Hungary's MOL reaches agreement with Russia's Gazprom Neft to purchase its 56.15% stake in Serbia's NIS, in talks with ADNOC on sale of minority stake
MOSCOW. Jan 19 (Interfax) - Hungary's MOL Group has signed a binding Heads of Agreement with Russia's Gazprom Neft to acquire its 56.15% stake in the Serbian Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS) corporation, MOL said in a statement.
"The energy sovereignty of landlocked countries requires the cooperation of strong local refineries that operate predictably and successfully and the involvement of strong partners. Therefore, the MOL Group 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 retaining MOL's majority ownership and control," MOL CEO Zsolt Hernadi was quoted as saying.
The completion of the transaction requires, among others, the approval of the United States of America's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and other governmental and state approvals in Serbia. The Heads of Agreement set out the key terms of the sale and purchase agreement, including the timeline for the due diligence of NIS and the application for regulatory approvals. The parties aim to sign the sales and purchase agreement by March 31, 2026.
Serbian TV channel RTS quoted Serbian Energy Minister Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic as saying earlier on Monday that Gazprom and MOL had agreed on the key terms of an agreement to sell shares in NIS, and that Serbia had managed to improve its position and would be able to increase its stake in NIS by 5% in future.
Djedovic Handanovic said MOL had committed not to close the Pancevo Oil Refinery, but to maintain the current level of production and increase it as the need arises.
The U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has extended the license permitting NIS shareholders to negotiate the sale of the Russian stake until March 24. Currently, the main co-owners of NIS are Gazprom Neft with 44.85% and the Serbian authorities with 29.87%, while another 11.3% of NIS shares belong to JSC Intelligence, which is managed by Gazprom Capital LLC. Gazprom directly owns one NIS share, and the Serbian company has minority shareholders, as well.
NIS was included in the U.S. SDN List in early 2025. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said at the time that the U.S. was demanding that Serbia completely remove Russian capital from NIS.
NIS is the only company in Serbia that explores for and produces hydrocarbons. The company 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 Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania and Bulgaria.
