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Hungarian Foreign Ministry will support MOL in buying NIS shares from Gazprom

The integrated, coordinated work of the Slovak, Hungarian, and Serbian oil markets could provide Central Europe with an unprecedented level of energy security, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto noted

BUDAPEST, January 19. /TASS/. The Hungarian government will provide diplomatic support to MOL in its acquisition of a controlling stake in Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS) from the Russian concern Gazprom until the deal is finalized, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto announced following reports that the parties have agreed on the commercial terms of the agreement.

"The integrated, coordinated work of the Slovak, Hungarian, and Serbian oil markets could provide Central Europe with an unprecedented level of energy security. Therefore, MOL can naturally count on the Hungarian government's diplomatic support during the negotiation phase after the signing of the first document, which will, of course, continue until the final agreement is signed," the MTI agency cited Szijjarto as saying.

Earlier on Monday, Serbian Minister of Mining and Energy Dubravka Djedovic-Handanovic announced in Belgrade that NIS, MOL, and Gazprom had agreed on the terms of the deal and would soon submit them to the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). After that the negotiators will need to wait for Washington to lift US sanctions against the Serbian company and obtain approval for the share purchase agreement.

The Energy Minister announced that Serbia will increase its stake in NIS by 5%, and that in addition to MOL, "partners from the United Arab Emirates" will participate in the deal. She stated that the deal is expected to be completed no later than March 24. Earlier Szijjarto said that MOL will hold a majority stake in the Serbian company.

NIS owners are forced to sell their assets because otherwise they will be subject to US sanctions. In January 2025, the US Treasury Department added the Serbian company to the sanctions list along with its majority shareholder, Gazprom Neft. After several deferrals, the restrictions came into effect on October 9, 2025. On November 11, 2025, the Serbian Energy Ministry announced that the Russian owners of NIS had notified the United States of their willingness to transfer control of the company to a third party. On December 31, 2025, NIS received a license from the US Treasury to continue operations until January 23, 2026.

NIS's main production facilities are located in Serbia, as well as in Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, and Romania. The majority shareholders are Gazprom Neft (44.85%), Serbia (29.87%), and St. Petersburg-based JSC Intelligence, managed by Gazprom Capital (11.3%).

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