Summary: Petroleos de Venezuela S.A.

One of the largest national oil companies worldwide; Long-proven reserve life and competitive production costs; Ownership of CITGO Petroleum Corp. (one of the leading oil refiners in the U.S.); and High social spending and government intervention. Aggressive financial policy but relatively strong credit metrics; Delays in the release of financial information; Aggressive capital expenditure (capex) program; and We believe the company could prioritize transfers in favor of the government before debt payments in a distressed scenario. The negative outlook on Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA) reflects that on Venezuela. We don't expect PDVSA's relationship with the government to change significantly in the next two to three years. We also believe that the government won't significantly reduce its strong involvement in

RESEARCH Summary: Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. Publication date: 08-Jul-2014 Primary Credit Analyst: Fabiola Ortiz, Mexico City (52) 55-5081-4449; fabiola.ortiz@standardandpoors.com Secondary Contact: Luciano D Gremone, Buenos Aires...

Summary