UK court freezes $12 bln in Venezuela assets-court docs

NEW YORK Feb 7 (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N) won a U.K. court order freezing up to $12 billion of assets belonging to Venezuela's state oil company, according to documents filed in a U.S. court.

The move comes ahead of a multibillion-dollar arbitration case over the state's nationalization of a huge oil project.

The order says Venezuela's oil firm PDVSA must not remove asssets from England or Wales up to the value of $12 billion. The company cannot dispose of, deal with or diminish the value of any of its assets up to the same value, the document said. (Reporting by Michael Erman)