"The issuer once again expressly states its willingness
to comply with the obligations derived from the bonds," PDVSA
said in the statement.
Many of the bonds were issued under New York state law and have a statute of limitations clause which states interest on those bonds is not enforceable after six years of default.
That milestone will be reached in October this year, leading to risks that creditors will file lawsuits in a bid to get some future payments.
The measure will be suspended for five years or until
the U.S government lifts sanctions, PDVSA and government said in
statements.
Venezuela's government made a similar offer to
bondholders in 2020, without success.
A committee of PDVSA creditors, who are owed some $10
billion between them, celebrated the decision and called on
opposition politicians to back the move.
Venezuela's opposition did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
"A legally enforceable tolling agreement would prevent
wasting money and resources on litigation," the creditors'
committee said in a statement.
PDVSA's decision would have to be backed by the opposition, which is the authority recognized by the U.S., two financial sources said.
Following the dissolution of the interim government lead
by Juan Guaido, Washington has backed the opposition-controlled
Congress, which established a committee to look after Venezuelan
overseas assets, including the Citgo oil refinery in the U.S.,
which is a PDVSA subsidiary.
(Reporting by Deisy Buitrago and Mayela Armas; Writing by
Oliver Griffin; Editing by Marianna Parraga and Marguerita Choy)
