New Simón Bolívar Foundation President, Mariela Poleo.

CITGO Petroleum Corporation announced the appointment of Mariela Poleo as President of the Simón Bolivar Foundation (SBF), the company’s non-profit, private foundation dedicated to catalyzing organizations and resources to meet the humanitarian needs of Venezuelans and Venezuelan refugees. As president, she will oversee all facets of SBF, including operations, financial management, and grant making activities.

Poleo will be the first female President of the Simón Bolivar Foundation. In recent months, CITGO has appointed women to key leadership roles including: its first Chairwoman Luisa Palacios, first female General Auditor Chrysti Ziegler as well as General Manager Terminal Facilities and Pipelines Kresha Sivinski and General Manager Hydrocarbon Logistics Judy Berckman.

Poleo’s appointment comes after a very competitive application process and thorough review and interview period conducted by CITGO and the Simón Bolívar Foundation.

A Venezuela native, Poleo brings a sense of duty and passion for her home country and decades of experience in industry operations and financial management to her new role. Prior to taking the helm at SBF, she served over twenty years in global roles at EQUINOR ASA (formerly Statoil), including Head of Finance and Control (Controller) for North American exploration and offshore development. In her different roles, Poleo has overseen billion-dollar budgets and strategic planning, management and financial analysis for major capital projects in North and South America, Norway and Africa. She has worked in Caracas, Venezuela; Oslo, Norway; and Houston, Texas. Prior to EQUINOR, while living in Venezuela she worked in engineering and supply for major projects within the oil industry.

Poleo is well positioned to lead the Simón Bolivar Foundation’s renewed focus on catalyzing organizations and resources aiding women and children in Venezuela. She is an active community leader and advocate for female empowerment in finance and industry. She is a member of several female professional organizations, including PinkPetro, a community for women in the energy industry, and the Women’s Energy Network. She also served on the steering committee for Women on Board 2020 Houston, on the Women in Equinor Houston Committee and supported finance training at The Women’s Resource of Greater Houston.

“We are thrilled to announce Mariela as president of the Simón Bolivar Foundation,” said CITGO Petroleum Corporation Board Chairwoman Luisa Palacios. “Her impressive operational, financial and management experience, professional ethics, track record helping women and commitment to her home country of Venezuela, are exactly the characteristics we need to continue building SBF into a top flight organization capable of helping with Venezuela’s complex humanitarian crisis and its renewed attention to the health of women and children in Venezuela.  As the first female President of SBF, we are certain Mariela’s leadership will be an asset to the foundation’s renewed mission.”  

“It is an honor to serve as the first female President of the Simón Bolivar Foundation,” said Poleo. “I look forward to working to strengthen SBF into a leading foundation, capable of transforming the lives of Venezuelans impacted by the nation’s complex humanitarian crisis.”

About the Simón Bolivar Foundation

The Simón Bolívar Foundation is the 501(c)(3) non-profit, private foundation of CITGO Petroleum Corporation. The Foundation supports initiatives, leverages existing resources and invests in organizations to meet the immediate and long-term health needs of the most vulnerable individuals particularly in and from Venezuela with a special focus on the health and well-being of children and their mothers. 

About CITGO 
Headquartered in Houston, Texas, CITGO Petroleum Corporation is a recognized leader in the refining industry with a well-known brand. CITGO operates three refineries located in Corpus Christi, Texas; Lake Charles, La.; and Lemont, Ill., and wholly and/or jointly owns 48 terminals, nine pipelines and three lubricants blending and packaging plants. With approximately 3,400 employees and a combined crude capacity of approximately 769,000 barrels-per-day (bpd), CITGO is ranked as the fifth-largest, and one of the most complex independent refiners in the United States. CITGO transports and markets transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products and supplies a network of approximately 4,700 locally owned and operated branded retail outlets in 30 states and the District of Columbia. CITGO Petroleum Corporation is owned by CITGO Holding, Inc. For more information, visit www.CITGO.com.

CITGO Petroleum Corporation

CITGO Petroleum Corporation

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, CITGO Petroleum Corporation is a recognized leader in the refining industry with a well-known brand. CITGO operates three refineries located in Corpus Christi, Texas; Lake Charles, La.; and Lemont, Ill., and wholly and/or jointly owns 48 terminals, nine pipelines and three lubricants blending and packaging plants. With approximately 3,400 employees and a combined crude capacity of approximately 769,000 barrels-per-day (bpd), CITGO is ranked as the fifth-largest, and one of the most complex independent refiners in the United States. CITGO transports and markets transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products and supplies a network of approximately 4,700 locally owned and operated branded retail outlets in 30 states and the District of Columbia. CITGO Petroleum Corporation is owned by CITGO Holding, Inc. For more information, visit www.CITGO.com. 

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