NIS Sanctions: Serbia and Hungary Seek OFAC Licenses
The Serbian oil company NIS, also known as the Serbian Oil Industry, has asked the United States Treasury and its Office of Foreign Assets Control to pause sanctions and to grant general or private licenses that would let NIS continue operating while a decision on ownership and governance is being worked out. The information comes from TASS, which cited data from the Ministry of Mining and Energy. The request signals a desire to bridge political considerations with practical needs for energy security in the region.
The appeal is supported by both the Serbian and Hungarian governments, and it centers on obtaining licenses that would permit ongoing activity during the ownership and management review. In practical terms, such licenses would allow NIS to maintain its day to day operations, keep suppliers paid, and continue essential energy distribution while the legal and corporate arrangements are clarified.
According to the press service, the company’s activities are deemed important for Serbia’s economy. Officials from the Ministry of Energy asked OFAC to identify a path that could lead to the easing or lifting of sanctions, arguing that preserving NIS’s operational capacity is critical for the country’s energy stability and industrial output. This stance reflects concerns about potential disruptions to fuel supply chains and downstream services in Serbia and neighboring markets.
Earlier, Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vulin indicated that the authorities would not permit a transfer of NIS from Russian control. The remarks underscored a domestic mandate to safeguard national interests while navigating the broader geopolitical landscape and the involvement of Gazprom Neft and other Russian stakeholders in the company’s ownership structure.
By the end of December, reports suggested that the Biden administration was pressuring Belgrade to maintain anti-Russian sanctions, with the notion that NIS remained under restrictive measures for roughly three years. The coverage framed these developments as part of a wider strategy to align regional energy policy with Washington’s sanctions regime while seeking a balance with Serbia’s economic needs and regional relationships.
In a prior briefing, officials signaled they were not ready to leverage Russia’s stake in NIS as a tool in negotiations or restructuring. The statement reflected a careful approach to ownership issues and the potential consequences of altering control, especially given NIS’s strategic role in energy supply and its connections to wider European gas and oil networks. The ongoing discussions highlight the tension between maintaining energy security for Serbia and its allies and adhering to international sanction frameworks that restrict geopolitical alignments.