balkaninsight.com<https://balkaninsight.com/2026/01/19/hungarian-mol-to-buy-majority-in-serbian-oil-industry-from-gazprom-neft/> Hungarian MOL to Buy Majority in Serbian Oil Industry from Gazprom Neft Milica Stojanovic, Edit Inotai 5–6 minutes ________________________________
The NIS company logo is seen in Belgrade, Serbia, October 2025. EPA/ANDREJ CUKIC The Hungarian MOL Group is to buy the majority of shares in Oil Industry of Serbia, NIS, from Russian company Gazprom Neft, the company said on Monday. In a press release MOL said it had signed a binding Heads of Agreement with Gazprom Neft to acquire its 56.15-per-cent stake in NIS. “Once the transaction is completed, MOL will assume significant shareholder responsibilities and control rights in the company operating Serbia’s only refinery, this way further strengthening its presence in the Central and Southeastern European energy market,” the press release said. Negotiations between MOL and Gazprom Neft are part of an attempt to preserve the Serbian company, sanctioned by the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, OFAC, by changing its ownership structure. In January last year<https://balkaninsight.com/2025/01/10/russian-capital-to-withdraw-from-oil-industry-of-serbia-according-to-us-sanctions-serbian-president/>, OFAC imposed measures against NIS, mostly owned by Gazprom Neft, as a package of sanctions against two of Russia’s most significant oil producers and exporters, Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegas. MOL Group CEO Zsolt Hernádi is quoted in the press release as saying that MOL is also in negotiations with ADNOC, from the United Arab Emirates, UAE, “to join the owners of NIS as a minority shareholder, while retaining MOL’s majority ownership and control”. To come into force, this deal will be sent to the US for further approval. It is not clear how the payment will be executed, given the sanctions against Russia. “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,” MOL said. “The parties aim to sign the sales and purchase agreement by 31 March 2026,” it added. Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto said the Hungarian government will continue to provide diplomatic support to MOL in purchasing NIS. “The integrated and coordinated operation of the Slovak, Hungarian and Serbian oil markets could put Central Europe in an exceptionally strong position in terms of energy supply security – stronger than ever before,” he emphasized. Serbian Minister of Energy Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic said earlier that “Serbia had succeeded in those negotiations to improve its position … that is, to increase our ownership in the Oil Industry of Serbia by 5 per cent in the future, and reach the number of shares that will allow us greater decision-making rights in the Shareholders’ Assembly.” MOL has not clarified this claim. The Hungarian pro-government outlet Magyar Nemzet described <https://magyarnemzet.hu/gazdasag/2026/01/mol-oriasi-siker-a-mole-szerbiai-olajipar-jelentos-resz> the transaction as the “deal of the century”. US sanctions were most visible at the NIS refinery in Pancevo, which supplies most of the Serbian market and which had to halt work in December<https://balkaninsight.com/2025/12/02/serbian-oil-refinery-suspends-production-due-to-us-sanctions/>. After obtaining a temporary licence from OPAC, the refinery started working again on Sunday. The US sanctioned NIS in January 2025. After a few waivers, the sanctions took effect in October. When the US first ordered sanctions on NIS, Gazprom owned 6.15 per cent of the company. Gazprom Neft, a subsidiary, owned another 50 per cent. Serbia owned just under 30 per cent, and other minority shareholders held just under 14 per cent. In February, Gazprom increased its ownership to 11.3 per cent, and Gazprom Neft decreased its share to 44.9 per cent. In September, the Russian-owned company JSC Intelligence took control of 11.3 per cent of the ownership of Gazprom. Serbia sold 51 per cent of NIS, its only oil company, to Gazprom in 2008 for what critics said was a bargain price of 400 million euros, plus a promised investment of 550 million euros. MOL tried to acquire NIS in 2008, but the stakes went to the Russians. This time, Hungarian leader Viktor Orban heavily lobbied for MOL, using his international network and good relationships with the US, Russia and Serbia at the same time. Telex.hu<http://time.telex.hu/> wrote that MOL CEO Zsolt Hernadi personally discussed details with Serbian president Vucic to ink the deal. Erste’s gas and oil analyst Tamas Pletser valued<https://www.portfolio.hu/gazdasag/20260119/hivatalos-lett-nagyon-bevasarol-a-mol-811955> the price of the Gazpromneft package at 1.4 billion euros, but said that Russia might have asked for a higher price. Most experts believe MOL made a good deal that will further strengthen its regional position, and its negotiating position vis-a-vis Croatian Janaf, which is accused by Hungary of unfairly raising transit prices to benefit from its monopolistic position, especially while Gazprom had invested heavily in the Pancevo refinery, which is seen as a high-quality asset. -- http:www.antic.org --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "SERBIAN NEWS NETWORK" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. 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