MEXICO CITY, July 29 (Xinhua) -- Emilio Lozoya, the former CEO of Mexico's state oil company Pemex, said during a court appearance Tuesday that he was innocent of corruption charges against him.

Pemex suffered major financial losses over its purchase of the near-worthless fertilizer plant, which had been sitting idle for years. (Photo: AFP)

Lozoya served as the head of Pemex during 2012-2016, and was arrested in Spain in February on an outstanding arrest warrant issued by Mexican judicial authorities, before being extradited to Mexico earlier this month.

He faces charges for his suspected role in a corruption scheme involving Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht and Pemex's multimillion-dollar purchase of a fertilizer plant called Agronitrogenados.

Lozoya has been under investigation since 2017, after Odebrecht revealed to U.S. prosecutors that it ran a multinational bribery operation to secure lucrative government contracts, including from Pemex.

Tuesday's hearing dealt with the Agronitrogenados purchase case, and another hearing into the Odebrecht case is due on Wednesday, according to local media report.