Croatia has offered to buy out the Petroleum Industry of Serbia.

Croatia is ready to buy out the company Naftna Promyshlennost Srbije (NIS), which has been subject to US sanctions due to its Russian stake , Economy Minister Ante Šušnjar said, commenting on the imposition of US sanctions against the Serbian company, Jutarnji reports.

Šušnjar stated that the Croatian pipeline operator JANAF, which has had close ties to NIS for over 40 years, received a license to transport oil for NIS until October 15. Croatia has already pumped everything that was in JANAF's terminals and the pipeline, Šušnjar emphasized. "This means there will be no more oil transportation to Serbia," he said.

“If this [buyout of the company] is the solution, we are ready for this option in order to ensure the continuity of JANAF’s operations and protect the company’s interests,” Shushnyar said.

The minister emphasized that even the severing of cooperation with NIS would not result in losses for JANAF, as the oil operator continues to work on diversifying its operations. "There will be no losses [for JANAF], we simply won't be able to complete this deal; it would be, so to speak, lost profit," the minister noted.

Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS) is the leading energy company in the Balkan region, specializing in the exploration, production, and refining of oil and natural gas. It owns an oil refinery in Pancevo, near Belgrade, and a network of over 400 petrol stations. Gazprom Neft holds a 44.85% stake in the company, Gazprom holds 11.3%, and Serbia holds 29.87%.

Sanctions against NIS were imposed in early January 2025, when the US demanded that Serbia completely divest Russian participation in the company. On the morning of October 9, NIS announced the US sanctions had taken effect. The company noted that it had not yet received a special license from the US Treasury Department, which is necessary for uninterrupted operations.

Serbia faces "grave consequences" due to US sanctions against oil company NIS, said Serbian President AleksandarVucic .

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