Gold Reserve affiliate submits bid in Citgo parent's auction

By Marianna Parraga

HOUSTON, June 3 (Reuters) - An affiliate of miner Gold Reserve GRZ.V has submitted a bid during the topping period of a U.S. court-organized auction of shares in the parent of Venezuela-owned U.S. refiner Citgo Petroleum, the company said on Tuesday.

Following the court's selection of a $3.7 billion offer by an affiliate of Contrarian Funds as starting bid this year, competitors can submit improved bids during the topping period through June 18, according to the Delaware court's calendar.

A court officer overseeing the sales process last month said the resolution of parallel legal cases in pursuit of the same assets that are being auctioned in the 8-year court case was encouraging new offers, without providing details.

The bid submitted by Gold Reserve's subsidiary Dalinar Energy is supported by a consortium including Rusoro Mining RML.V, Koch Minerals and Koch Nitrogen International, the company said in a release.

"Dalinar Energy may revise its bid in advance of the June 18 expiration of the topping period," it said, adding that its offer combines equity and debt financing and is supported by a lending consortium including three leading financial institutions.

All the bids' specific terms are expected to remain confidential until the judge discloses the auction's results.

Besides Contrarian Funds and the Gold Reserve group, trading house Vitol also competed during the starting bid phase, court documents showed.

A winner of the auction, set to compensate up to 15 creditors for debt defaults and expropriations in Venezuela, will be recommended by June 27 by court officer Robert Pincus.