OFAC extends NIS operating license until July 31 – MOL also gets more time to continue negotiations on purchase of majority stake

NIS will continue to operate throughout July, while Hungary’s MOL will continue negotiations with Gazpromneft on the takeover of the Russian stake in the company. Experts estimate that the extension of temporary licenses does not solve the core problem, but that additional time has been given for a permanent solution to the status of NIS.

NIS’s operating license has been extended until midnight on July 31. The company continues to operate, although it is under sanctions due to its Russian ownership. This means that it has been given another month to find a solution.

At the same time, MOL has received a license to continue negotiations on the purchase of the Russian stake in NIS until July 31.

The new license allows NIS to continue operating, i.e. to process crude oil.

– We have just been informed by OFAC that the operating license for the continuation of NIS’s operations has been extended for another 30 days - until July 31. In this way, the Pancevo Refinery continues to process crude oil, which is particularly important in the global energy crisis – Minister of Energy Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic announced on Instagram.

As a reminder, on June 26, NIS submitted a new application for an operating license to the US Department of the Treasury. The explanation at the time stated that the extension of the operating license was crucial for the orderly supply of the Serbian market.

On June 16, Minister of Mining and Energy Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic signed a Shareholders’ Agreement with the MOL Group regarding the future management of Naftna industrija Srbije (NIS), which will enter into force if MOL and Gazpromneft reach an agreement and the US OFAC approves it.

NIS a.d. Novi Sad

OFAC

Gazpromneft

MOL

NIS

operating license