Luis Giusti ousted from the board of directors of Citgo Petroleum

The logo of U.S. unit Citgo Petroleum of PDVSA is seen at a gas station in Stowell, Texas, U.S., June 12, 2018. REUTERS/Jonathan Bachman

HOUSTON, April 11 (Reuters) – Oil executive Luis Giusti Lugo has been removed from the board of directors of Houston-based refiner Citgo Petroleum, the head of the company’s watchdog said on Monday.

“Citgo Holding’s board of directors unanimously agreed two weeks ago to request his resignation,” said Horacio Medina, head of PDV’s ad hoc board, without giving details of the reasons.

Giusti was officially notified on Friday, Medina added. Citgo, the US branch of Venezuelan state-owned PDVSA, is controlled by the Venezuelan opposition through a chain of supervisory boards.

Giusti, the son of a former PDVSA chairman, replaced CEO Carlos Jorda in a Citgo board shuffle last June. This reshuffle led to five appointments linked to different Venezuelan opposition parties, several of which have left in the meantime. Read more

Last month, Robert Kent joined Citgo Petroleum’s board of directors.

Citgo, which on Monday no longer listed the executive as a member of its board of directors, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Reporting by Marianna Parraga; Editing by Gary McWilliams

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