UPDATE 1-US extends Citgo protection from creditors through April as auction looms

The U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday extended Venezuela-owned Citgo Petroleum's temporary protection from creditors through mid-April as a court-ordered auction of shares in the refiner's parent heads toward a bidding deadline this month. The three-month extension provides time for a board supervising Citgo to negotiate settlements with creditors, but would not stop the auction in a U.S. District Court in Delaware. Half of the refiner's shares are collateral for 2020 bonds issued by Citgo's ultimate parent, Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA.