WILLEMSTAD – The Joint Court of Justice has ruled that Venequip S.A. and Solidus Investments S.A. are jointly liable for a major outstanding debt owed to Caterpillar Crédito, ordering them to pay more than US$72.9 million, plus interest, in a long-running international loan dispute connected to business operations in Venezuela.
The case involved VMSC Curaçao N.V., Venequip S.A., Solidus Investments S.A. and Caterpillar Crédito, a Mexican financing company within the Caterpillar group. The dispute centered on a loan agreement originally dating back to 2007, later expanded and restructured, which was used to finance Caterpillar-related business activities in Venezuela.
The Court confirmed that VMSC had failed to meet its payment obligations after October 2017 and rejected the company's argument that it had already paid ahead through earlier transfers linked to claims against PDVSA. According to the Court, those payments were applied to the principal amount of the loan and did not cover future monthly installments.
VMSC also argued that Venezuela's political and economic crisis, including U.S. sanctions, should qualify as force majeure or unforeseen circumstances. The Court rejected that defense, ruling that the risks of doing business in Venezuela had long been known to the parties. The judges noted that the deteriorating political and economic situation in Venezuela could not release VMSC from its contractual obligations.
The Court also refused to reduce the contractual interest, finding no reason to conclude that the interest clause led to an excessive or unacceptable result.
In a separate part of the ruling, the Court found that Venequip and Solidus remained bound by their guarantees. The companies had argued that the later restructuring of the loan meant the original guarantee no longer applied. The Court disagreed, ruling that the 2015 loan was a continuation and restructuring of an existing credit relationship, not a completely new loan that erased earlier obligations.
As a result, the Court overturned part of the lower court's ruling and ordered Venequip and Solidus to pay US$72,921,423.80, plus 15.75 percent annual interest from December 27, 2017, until full payment. The amount must be reduced by US$31.8 million already received by Caterpillar Crédito under political risk insurance policies.