MOL gets two more weeks to complete NIS purchase talks, Hungarian company “optimistic”

Energy Minister Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic announced that the Hungarian company MOL had been given two more weeks to complete negotiations with Gazpromneft on the purchase of the Russian stake in Naftna industrija Srbije (NIS).

The minister stated on Instagram that the state of Serbia had been informed that the new deadline was June 6, without specifying the source of the information.

– As we have repeatedly emphasized, the government of Serbia, led by President [Aleksandar] Vucic, continues negotiations with MOL regarding the shareholders’ agreement. The situation is complex, but our goal and job is to find a long-term solution and protect the interests of the state of Serbia – stated Djedovic Handanovic.

The deadline set by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Treasury Department for the completion of negotiations would, without these changes, expire today.

Majority owner Gazprom Neft submitted a draft purchase agreement for the sale of its stake to Hungary’s MOL back in January.

MOL CEO: Negotiations on the purchase of NIS in the final stage, we are optimistic

The CEO of the Hungarian MOL Group, Zsolt Hernadi, said regarding the extension of the deadline for completing negotiations on the purchase of the Russian stake in NIS that significant progress had been made up till that point, that the negotiations had entered the final stage and that they were conditionally “optimistic.”

N1 reports that MOL informed the Budapest Stock Exchange that they received official permission from the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to continue negotiations on the purchase of a majority stake in NIS until June 6, 2026.

– Over the past months, we have conducted intensive negotiations with all key participants in the transaction related to NIS and have made significant progress. We have entered the final stage of these very complex negotiations. We are optimistic, however, certain conditions and details still need to be agreed upon in the coming weeks. We continue to believe that this transaction would be beneficial for all parties involved and contribute to the long-term security of supply of the region as a whole, and Serbia in particular – said Hernadi, as reported by N1.

Shortly before this confirmation, Serbian Energy Minister Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic also announced on her Instagram account that “the state of Serbia has just been informed that MOL has been given two more weeks to complete negotiations with Gazpromneft on the purchase of the Russian stake in NIS.”

The deadline given to MOL by OFAC to reach an agreement expired on Saturday.

Ministarstvo rudarstva i energetike Republike Srbije

NIS a.d. Novi Sad

MOL Serbia d.o.o. Beograd

MOL Hungarian Oil and Gas Budapest

Ministry of Energy

Gazpromneft

Naftna industrija Srbije

NIS

OFAC

MOL

Dubravka Đedović Handanović

Zsolt Hernadi