MOL becomes the majority shareholder of the oil company of Serbia, NIS. He bought from Gazprom
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The Hungarian company MOL and the Russian group Gazprom have agreed on the basic provisions of the future agreement regarding the acquisition by MOL of the Russian stake in the oil company NIS from Serbia, Tanjug reports.
The agreement, which also provides for a 5% increase in Serbia’s participation in NIS, will be sent for approval to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) within the US Treasury Department, Serbian Minister of Mining and Energy, Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic, announced on Monday.
“What is important in these negotiations is that Serbia managed to improve its position compared to 2008, when we remained with a share below 30%, and in the future we will increase our share in NIS by 5%, which will allow us increased decision-making rights and protect the interests of our citizens,” the official said.
According to the agreement, MOL will acquire Gazprom’s 56.15% stake in NIS.
“As a reliable regional energy supplier, we want to contribute to the development of Central and South-Eastern Europe. MOL is committed to working together with the Government of Serbia to further strengthen the security of supply in Serbia and the region. As a result, MOL is in negotiations with ADNOC, the national oil company of the United Arab Emirates, to join the owners of NIS as a minority shareholder, while MOL remains the majority shareholder and holds control,” stated the President and CEO of MOL, Zsolt Hernadi.
The oil company NIS is targeted by US sanctions because of its Russian shareholders. Two Russian companies, Gazprom Neft and Gazprom, own 44.9% and 11.3% of NIS shares, respectively, but must sell their shares.
On Monday, NIS announced that the Pancevo oil refinery has initiated restart activities that will allow the resumption of commercial operations of the production facilities, with enough crude oil to keep the refinery operating until February.
On December 31, 2025, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Treasury Department issued a special authorization that allows NIS to carry out operational activities until January 23 of the current year.
NIS owns the only refinery in Serbia, located in Pancevo, near the capital Belgrade, as well as a chain of over 400 gas stations in Bosnia Herzegovina, Bulgaria and Romania. The Serbian state, whose Government has not imposed sanctions on Russia, owns 29.9% of NIS shares.
