Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has made a new appeal to the US government to issue a license to the national oil company NIS so that it can continue working during the negotiations for the sale of the majority Russian stake, the TANJUG agency reported, quoted by BTA.
“I still do not know what the American decision is. I call on them once again to make a positive decision“, Vucic told citizens at a rally in Mionica, western Serbia, where local elections will be held on November 30.
In January, the US announced sanctions against NIS due to the war in Ukraine and the “secondary risk”, demanding the complete withdrawal of Russian capital from the company. Only a few days ago, the Russian side announced its readiness to sell its share. Vucic said he wanted to give the Russian side 50 days to sell the majority stake in NIS.
The Serbian state owns 29.9% of NIS shares, while the main owner remains „Gazprom Neft“ with 44.9%. At the end of September, the St. Petersburg-based company „Intelligence“, affiliated with „Gazprom“, acquired 11.3% of the shares of the parent company „Gazprom“.
NIS was placed under sanctions on January 10, which entered into force on October 9 after eight postponements. Since yesterday, the refinery in Pancevo, near Belgrade, has been operating in the so-called „quiet mode“, which experts say could last only four more days before the facility shuts down if NIS does not receive a license to operate si.
Earlier today, the Minister of Mining and Energy Dubravka Džedović Handanović said that they expect the US government to grant a license to NIS within hours.