Citgo was founded in1910 by Henry Doherty in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. The company began very small and was named Cities Services Company. It provided gas and electricity to small, local, utility companies in the state.
Today, Citgo belongs in part to Petroleos de Venezuela and part to Rosnef, a Russian oil and gas company. Citgo is one of the world’s largest suppliers of gas, lubrication, and electrical services. In 2004, the company had an annual revenue of $32.02 billion and employs approximately 4,000 people in the US. The company has 3 oil refineries in the US and more than 140 facilities across the US. The company offers its own credit card for purchases at their facilities.
The company is a major sponsor of the Bassmaster Fishing Tour, and is also the sponsor of a charity golf tournament benefiting the Muscular Dystrophy Association. In 2016, the company donated half a million dollars to the presidential campaign of Donald Trump.
In November 2021, the company announced that it would be replacing two board members.
Also that same month, the company began new talks with the US government in an attempt to stave off bankruptcy and risk breaking up the company to pay outstanding debts.
Headquartered in the Energy Corridor area of Houston, Texas, it is majority-owned by PDVSA, a state-owned company of the Venezulean government (although due to U.S. sanctions, in 2019, they no longer economically benefit from Citgo).
