Serbia’s Vucic Not Optimistic About Timely NIS Oil Firm Deal with MOL
Overview of the NIS-MOL Deal and Related Developments
Background of the NIS Stake Sale
ATHENS, May 22 (Reuters) - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said he was not optimistic that an agreement will be reached over Hungarian oil company MOL's bid to take a majority stake in NIS, the operator of the Balkan nation's sole refinery, before a Friday deadline.
Russia's Gazprom Neft and Gazprom agreed to sell their 56% majority stake in NIS to MOL in January after the United States demanded the divestment of Russian-owned shares due to sanctions over Moscow's war in Ukraine.
Washington has given the Russian companies and MOL until May 22 to complete the sale, which requires Serbian government consent due to the state's 29.9% stake in NIS.
Statements from Serbian President Vucic
Speaking to Serbia's RTS television late on Thursday, Vucic said it was unlikely a deal between MOL and the Russian companies would be reached by Friday.
"We have had countless meetings with people from MOL. I hope we will end successfully, but I am not optimistic," he said.
However, Washington was expected to give the involved parties more time to conclude a deal, he said.
Impact of U.S. Sanctions and Waivers
The U.S. imposed sanctions on NIS in October due to its Russian ownership as part of wider measures targeting Moscow's energy sector. NIS, however, has secured a series of waivers from the U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
Reporting Credits
(Reporting by Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Kirsten Donovan )
