The US Office of Foreign Assets Control within the Treasury Department (OFAC) has extended the operating license for the Oil Industry of Serbia (NIS) until February 20, Serbian Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabić confirmed on January 23.

"This means that NIS and the refinery will continue to operate. This buys additional time for our citizens, the country and the economy," Brnabic said during a press conference at the Serbian Parliament.

As reported by Radio Television of Serbia (RTS), OFAC has emphasized in a letter that a condition for extending the license is that the transactions do not involve US entities or the US financial system, and do not involve, be on behalf of, or for the benefit, directly or indirectly, of any sanctioned entity other than NIS.

It is also a condition that the transactions do not involve any other activity subject to sanctions under the sanctions regulation due to Russia's harmful foreign policy activities.

NIS is currently under US sanctions because most of its ownership is in the hands of Russian companies, while in order to lift the sanctions, the US administration is demanding Russia's exit from ownership.

Hungarian group MOL confirmed on January 19 that it has signed a framework agreement, with key points, with the Russian company Gazprom Neft for the acquisition of 56.15 percent of the shares in NIS.

Serbia's Minister of Mining and Energy, Dubravka Gjedović Handanović, stated on January 20 that NIS has submitted a request to the US administration for the extension of its operating license, while negotiations on this issue are underway.

The transaction is subject to OFAC approval. The previous license to continue operations, which NIS obtained three weeks ago, expires at midnight./REL