Serbia, MOL sign agreement on future management of NIS, talks with Gazprom Neft ongoing
MOSCOW. June 16 (Interfax) - The Serbian Ministry of Mining and Energy and Hungary's MOL have signed a shareholder agreement on the future management of Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS).
The agreement will allow NIS to continue its development, supply the Serbian market and operate the Pancevo refinery if MOL becomes the majority owner of NIS, the Serbian news outlet RTS reported.
MOL is still in talks with Russia's Gazprom Neft to acquire a 56.15% stake in NIS. In addition to signing the purchase agreement, additional permits from regulatory bodies are required to complete the transaction, the key one being the U.S. OFAC.
"Under this agreement, which the Serbian government has approved, we will acquire an additional 5% of NIS shares, and the refinery will operate for at least the next 10 years at the same capacity it operated at for the four years before U.S. sanctions were imposed. The agreement also guarantees the smooth operation of subsidiaries, including Petrohemija. Our representatives on the board of directors will have more influence on decision-making at NIS," Serbian Mining and Energy Minister Dubravka Dedovic Handanovic was quoted as saying.
"Following completion of the transaction, MOL, as the majority shareholder, will be able to manage NIS effectively and professionally. We will be able to begin working together with clearly defined responsibilities and decision-making processes, ending a lengthy period of uncertainty. However, it is important to undermine that this agreement does not yet mark the end of the sale process. An agreement with the seller [Gazprom Neft] and U.S. approvals are required," MOL CEO Zsolt Hernadi said.
The United States Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has, following a request by MOL, extended the deadline for negotiations to acquire a controlling stake in NIS to June 16. The NIS operating license was also due to expire on June 16.
MOL has reached an agreement with Gazprom Neft to purchase 56.15% of NIS. MOL could subsequently sell a minority stake in NIS to Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), and Serbia could increase its stake in NIS by 5 percentage points in the future. Completion of the transaction requires approval from OFAC, as well as from Serbia's government.
NIS is currently majority owned by Gazprom Neft with 44.85%, with another 11.3% held by JSC Intelligence, managed by Gazprom Capital LLC. Gazprom directly owns one NIS share. The Serbian government owns 29.87% of NIS, and the Serbian company also has minority shareholders.
NIS, as a subsidiary of Gazprom Neft, was included in the U.S. Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN) List in early 2025. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said at the time that the U.S. was demanding the complete withdrawal of Russian capital.
NIS is Serbia's only hydrocarbon exploration and production company. It has a large oil refinery in Pancevo and dominates Serbia's oil product market. NIS also has a chain of more than 400 filling stations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria and Romania.
