Good news: NIS sanctions postponed

"At this moment, it was not possible to get a longer delay. It is a question of global politics and relations and negotiations of world powers, which are very complex. Serbia managed to avoid becoming collateral damage with the delay, but the situation is still very uncertain. We will continue to defend the interests of our citizens and economy," said the Minister of Mining and Energy, Dubravka Djedović Handanović.

The minister also states that specific measures are being taken to reduce uncertainty in the operations of NIS. The Government of Serbia is also doing what is in its power, so on July 24, new members of the Board of Directors of the Petroleum Industry of Serbia were elected. It is the first time that a vice president has been elected, who is a member of the Board of Directors, and who was appointed by the Government of Serbia.

In addition, the process of electing two independent members of the Board of Directors is underway, all in order to fulfill the requirements of OFAC (Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US Department of the Treasury) regarding the management of the company.

"Sanctions were postponed by a difficult and strenuous diplomatic struggle of the members of the Government and the President of Serbia, but the most important thing is that we managed to achieve another, fifth postponement. This is important and useful news for the citizens of Serbia since they will not bear any consequences, as they have not suffered until now. Despite the complex circumstances in which it operates, NIS continues to regularly supply the domestic market with all types of oil derivatives and remains committed to preserving energy stability," the minister emphasized.

Djedović Handanović expressed her gratitude to the Government of Hungary for its support to NIS.

"The most important thing for us as a country is to preserve a stable supply of oil derivatives, and the ultimate goal is to remove NIS from OFAC's sanctions list. For that, progress in the dialogue between the USA and Russia is most important," concluded the Minister of Mining and Energy.