MONTEVIDEO, (Reuters) – South American OPEC nation Venezuela will allow Uruguay to pay off a $400 million energy debt at a 35 percent discount, Uruguay said on Monday.
Uruguay will pay Venezuela $262 million to settle the debt, President Tabare Vazquez said after meeting with Venezuelan officials in Montevideo.
Venezuela during the decade-long oil boom allowed allied countries in the region to buy oil on generous financing terms through cooperation agreements, creating billions of dollars in outstanding bills.
Last year’s oil market crash left Caracas scrambling for cash and negotiating deals to write down those debts in exchange for cash up front.
The Dominican Republic in January paid $1.93 billion to settle a $4 billion debt that accrued under the Petrocaribe energy cooperation agreement.
