MOL gets US licence extension to negotiate purchase of sanctioned NIS oil firm, news agency reports

The US Treasury's OFAC has extended a licence to Hungary's MOL to negotiate the purchase of a majority stake in Serbia's NIS until July 1.

The U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has extended a licence to Hungary's energy company MOL to negotiate the purchase of a majority stake ‌in Serbia's Russian-owned NIS until July 1, Serbian news agency Tanjug reported on ‌Wednesday. The report offered no further details, and MOL did not immediately reply to a request for comment from Reuters.

OFAC imposed sanctions on NIS in October as the U.S. targeted Russia's energy sector over the ⁠war ​in Ukraine, and demanded that ⁠Russian firms divest the NIS shares they own. MOL signed an agreement in January to buy the ⁠combined 51.56% stake held by Gazprom Neft and Gazprom , pending OFAC approval.

U.S. sanctions forced NIS, ​which owns the only refinery in Serbia, to seek waivers from OFAC to buy ⁠and process crude oil, which would not be required once a share sale is completed. Late on Tuesday, ⁠OFAC ​granted NIS a sanctions reprieve until July 1. Croatian oil pipeline operator Janaf has received a similar licence from OFAC to continue supplying oil to NIS until July ⁠1, Janaf said in a statement on Wednesday. Also on Tuesday, MOL signed a shareholders' ⁠agreement with Serbia ⁠over its 29.9% stake in NIS, separate from acquisition talks between MOL and Russian companies.