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Venezuela's state-owned oil firm Petróleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA) is selling its stake in Nynas AB, according to a government official.

Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez is quoted by Caracas's El Mundo newspaper as saying in an interview that PDVSA was "in the process of liquidating the partnership."

PDVSA and and Finland's Neste Oil are 50-50 partners in Swedish firm Nynas AB, a leading manufacturer of specialty naphthenic oil and asphalt products.

Nynas owns refineries in Nynäshamn, Gothenburg and Dundee in addition to a refinery in Eastham, UK, which is a joint venture with oil major Shell. The four refineries have a combined capacity of 67,000 barrels per day. Nynas is also an established supplier of marine fuels in a number of UK ports.

The Nynas plants process Venezuelan crude, which is then converted into asphalt and other products. It appears that the use and value of the South American firm's oil is a key reason for the decision to pull out of the joint venture.

Referring to the supply contracts for the facilities, Ramirez is reported as saying: "They do not value our Venezuelan crude fairly."

State-owned PDVSA has been selling off its ownership interests in a number of international refineries and terminals over the past few years, which is said to have been part of a overall strategy to raise capital for the company and also for the local government.

Two years ago, PDVSA sold its 50 percent stake in four Ruhr Oel refineries in Germany to Russia's Rosneft for $1.6 billion. In 2008, the company also sold the Bahamas Oil Refining Company (BORCO) oil storage terminal in Freeport, Bahamas, to Vopak and First Reserve Corporation.

Meanwhile, the Hovensa LLC refinery in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, a joint venture between PDVSA and Hess Corp, was shut down last month. The facility is expected to operate as an oil storage terminal.

Neste Oil is a refining and marketing company with a primary focus on lower-emission traffic fuels. The company produces a comprehensive range of major petroleum products and is the world's leading supplier of renewable diesel. The company achieved net sales of EUR 15.4 billion in 2011.

Neste Oil operates a fleet of around 30 vessels. It transports around 40 million tons of crude oil, petroleum products and chemicals annually, primarily in the Baltic Sea, the North Sea and the North Atlantic. The company is also a leading bunker supplier in Finnish ports.