BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 5. Hungary's MOL
Group has received an additional licence from the US Department of
the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) authorising
preparatory transactions related to its potential acquisition of an
ownership interest in Serbia's NIS a.d. Novi Sad, MOL said on
November 5.
According to MOL, the license was granted to MOL and MOL Serbia
Investment Kft. and allows certain transactions necessary for the
transfer of Russian-issued securities to MOL Serbia Investment
Kft., as well as related activities, including obtaining certain
required approvals from Russian government authorities.
The license is valid until February 28, 2027.
However, the authorization does not cover the completion of the
transaction that would result in the divestment of Russian
ownership and control in NIS. A separate OFAC authorization will be
required to complete the transaction.
NIS, one of Serbia's major energy companies, is subject to US
sanctions related to its Russian ownership. MOL's potential
acquisition is part of efforts to restructure the company's
ownership.
NIS a.d. Novi Sad (Naftna Industrija Srbije) is one of Serbia's
largest energy companies and a major player in the country's oil
and gas sector. Other than its business in Serbia, NIS also
operates in the countries of the region. The oil and gas
exploration and production activities are carried out in Romania
and Bosnia-Herzegovina, along with company’s retail active in
Bulgaria, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Romania. NIS operates a network of
over 400 petrol stations in the Balkan market under two brands –
NIS Petrol and the premium brand GAZPROM. Furthermore, NIS is
active in electricity trade where, in addition to the Serbian
market, it is present on the markets of Bosnia-Herzegovina,
Montenegro, Romania, Slovenia and Hungary.
