BELGRADE, January 13. /TASS/. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic hopes the US Treasury will renew the operating license for NIS (Neftna Industrija Srbije) after the American side reviews the binding terms of the contract for the sale of Russia's stake in the Serbian company.

"Once the binding terms of the contract are provided, it will become clear where everything is heading, and after that, it’s basically a done deal. I expect and hope that this will happen within the next 48 hours and within the deadline we have set, that is, by January 15. And then I hope for the license to be renewed," Vucic told Serbian reporters while visiting Abu Dhabi.

The Serbian leader also stressed that Belgrade is not to decide who will receive the Russian shareholders' stake in NIS. He said the buyer will be announced within a few days. In response to journalists' questions, Vucic acknowledged that the Hungarian concern MOL and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company ADNOC are among the possible parties involved in the deal. A final agreement on the sale of the stake could be concluded by February or March.

In early January 2025, the US Department of the Treasury introduced sanctions against Russian oil producer Gazprom Neft, its CEO Alexander Dyukov, and against Serbian NIS. The US has repeatedly postponed sanctions against the company since then. Restrictions came into force on October 9.

At an extraordinary government meeting on November 16, Serbia's Finance Minister called on President Aleksandar Vucic to consider nationalizing NIS due to mounting pressure and threats to the country's economy.

On December 31, 2025, the Serbian Ministry of Energy announced that NIS had received a license from the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to continue operations until January 23. On the same day, the Croatian government announced that OFAC had issued a license to JANAF, allowing it to continue transporting oil for NIS until January 23, 2026. As official Zagreb noted, this decision ensures the continuation of oil supplies exclusively from non-Russian sources.

NIS is one of the largest vertically integrated energy systems in Southeastern Europe. Its majority shareholders are Gazprom Neft (44.85% of shares), Gazprom (11.3%), and Serbia (29.87%).