On March 14, 2019, OFAC reissued General License 7 (“GL 7”) as General License 7A (“GL 7A”) to extend the general license’s authorization for certain activities involving PDV Holding, Inc. (“PDVH”) and CITGO Holding, Inc. (“CITGO”). While the original GL 7(a) was set to expire on July 27, 2019, GL 7A(a) automatically renews on the first day of each month, and is valid for a period of 18 months from the last renewal date. GL 7A(a) authorizes certain transactions with PDVH, CITGO, and their subsidiaries that would otherwise be prohibited as a result of the designation of their parent, Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A. (“PdVSA”), on January 28, 2019 under Executive Order 13850. We note that the separate petroleum-related provision that appears in GL 7(b) has not changed, and still expires on April 28, 2019. GL 7A(b) continues to authorize PDVH, CITGO, and their subsidiaries to engage in transactions ordinarily incident and necessary to the purchase and importation of petroleum and petroleum products from PdVSA (and any entity in which PdVSA owns, directly or indirectly, a 50 percent or greater interest). Our prior blog posts on the scope of GL 7 are here and here.
On January 28, 2019, the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) designated Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (“PdVSA”) as a Specially Designated National (“SDN”) under Executive Order 13850 of November 1, 2018. As a result, US Persons are prohibited from dealing with PdVSA as of January 28, unless authorized by OFAC. (For these purposes, US Persons are entities organized under US laws and their non-US branches; individuals and entities physically located in the United States; US citizens and permanent resident aliens (“Green Card” holders) wherever located or employed.)
On February 11, 2019, the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) amended and issued two general licenses, General License 3C (“GL 3C”) and General License 9B (“GL 9B”), both related to Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (“PdVSA”) and entities 50% or more owned by PdVSA (“PdVSA Companies”), and revised three related FAQs, FAQs 650, 661, and 662 to provide updated guidance on GL 3C and GL 9B.
On January 31, 2019, OFAC issued eleven new FAQs and amended two existing FAQs in connection with the designation of Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (“PdVSA”) as a Specially Designated National (“SDN”) pursuant to Executive Order 13850 on January 28, 2019. In addition, on February 1, 2019, OFAC amended two PdVSA-related general licenses (“GL”) and issued two additional FAQs describing the scope of those amendments, which modify the terms under which certain transactions involving PdVSA bonds and securities are authorized. Our prior blog post on the SDN designation of PdVSA and the previously issued Venezuela GLs is available here.