Sanctioned Serbian oil firm NIS had its temporary US operating licence extended on Friday, Serbia’s energy minister said, as Belgrade hopes a deal for its Russian majority owners to exit will be signed soon.
Petroleum Industry of Serbia’s operating licence was extended until mid-June, allowing the country to continue oil imports and avoid another shutdown of its sole refinery under pressure from Washington’s crackdown on Russian energy.
“We have received good news from the United States,” said Energy Minister Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic, quoted on the website of the national broadcaster .
“The operating licence granted to NIS has been extended for 60 days, which is very important for more stable planning of crude oil purchases.”
Talks on selling a Russian-majority stake in NIS to Hungary’s energy giant MOL have lasted months, with the US setting a May 22 deadline for completion.
Serbian officials do not expect the agreement to be jeopardised by the recent change of government in Hungary, but a deal is yet to be finalised.
“MOL’s position is to continue talks both with Serbia and with the Russian partner, and to bring to a conclusion what we have been discussing,” Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said, following Viktor Orban’s electoral defeat.
NIS, which supplies 80 percent of Serbia’s fuel market, was forced to halt production at its main Pancevo refinery in December after long-delayed sanctions cut off crude supplies.
Serbia remains a close Kremlin ally and one of the few European states not to sanction Russia over the war in Ukraine. The Balkan nation sold a majority stake in NIS to Gazprom in 2008 for 400 million euros .
It is now 45 percent owned by Gazprom Neft, which is under US sanctions, while Gazprom transferred its 11.3 percent stake in September to its affiliated firm, Intelligence.
The Serbian state owns nearly 30 percent, with the rest held by minority shareholders.
Officials say the country intends to raise its stake by five percent after the sale.
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GAZPROM NEFT
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