U.S. sanctions against Serbia's NIS delayed for another month
ROME. Aug 27 (Interfax) - The U.S. Department of the Treasury has again delayed the imposition of sanctions against the Serbian oil company NIS for one month, until September 26, the Serbian radio and television channel RTS reported.
"Under the current complicated conditions, NIS will continue to stably supply the country's market with oil and petroleum products," Serbian Energy Minister Dubravka Dedovic Handanovic said. "The ultimate goal of NIS is to be removed from the sanctions list, but this process does not depend on Serbia," she said.
"We hope that the continuation of high-level negotiations between the U.S. and Russia will be able to positively influence the elimination of uncertainty regarding NIS and its removal from the sanctions list," Dedovic Handanovic said.
Serbia has done nothing for the sanctions against NIS to be imposed, she said, adding that it is a matter of global politics. "We will continue to fight, using all diplomatic means to ensure the stability of supply for our citizens and industry," she said.
The day before, the head of the company Srbijagas, Dusan Bajatovic, said that "NIS is currently operating normally and there is sufficient fuel in Serbia."
"We have reserves for six to eight months. If we were to deliver more now, I don't know where we would store it - everything is full," he said.
NIS has submitted a new request to the U.S. Treasury Department for a delay of U.S. sanctions - after August 27, RTS reported on Friday.
Washington has already extended the delay on the entry into force of such restrictive measures five times, it said.
On January 10, the U.S. imposed sanctions against two Russian oil companies - Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegas , as well as their subsidiaries. NIS, the Serbian subsidiary of Gazprom Neft, was also included in the SDN List.
At the end of February, Gazprom Neft transferred 5.15% of NIS shares to Gazprom . It currently holds 44.85% of NIS shares, and Gazprom holds 11.3%. Another 29.87% of NIS shares are owned by Serbia, the rest by minority shareholders.
According to Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, the U.S. is demanding the complete withdrawal of Russian capital from NIS. However, the government transferred control of it to Gazprom Neft in 2008, and over the preceding years, the Russian company and NIS have contributed significant revenues to the Serbian budget as well as furthered the development of many projects, he said.
NIS is the only company in Serbia engaged in the exploration and production of hydrocarbons; it also owns a large oil refinery in the city of Pancevo. The company dominates the country's petroleum products market. The NIS gas station network is present in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, and Romania, comprising over 400 stations in total.
