No Decision on Negotiating Team for INA

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Regional Development and EU Funds Branko Grčić confirmed that the Government will not make a decision today regarding the state’s negotiating team for talks with MOL about amendments to the shareholders’ agreement concerning INA.

Although it was announced last week that the Government would make a decision today, Grčić told reporters ahead of the Government session that, as far as he knows, this will not happen.

– There was talk about it, but we need to prepare the matter thoroughly – said Grčić.

Last week, Poslovni dnevnik reported that the Government intends to appoint a new team for negotiations with MOL this week, and that the new negotiating team would include Minister of Economy Ivan Vrdoljak and the head of the State Office for Management of State Property Mladen Pejnović, as well as special advisors, INA Management Board member Davor Mayer and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of INA Siniša Petrović.

Grčić stated a week ago that a platform for negotiations with MOL regarding amendments to the shareholders’ agreement concerning INA is being developed, and he hopes that it will be prepared very soon, as well as the appointment of people who will be involved in that process.

Organized by one of INA’s unions, the union of workers and companies of INA “Inaš”, a protest is being held today at Markov trg against the plan of INA’s Management to franchise part of the gas stations to private entrepreneurs. Under the slogan ‘INA works, MOL builds’, the union warns that this plan aims to reduce INA to a subsidiary of MOL and disenfranchise the workers.

Workers in front of the Government building carried union flags and umbrellas along with banners reading “INA works, MOL builds”, “To extra profits on the backs of workers”, “From a reputable oilman to a poor servant”, and union representatives demanded that the Government urgently stop MOL’s violations of obligations towards INA, prevent the separation of retail from INA, and open negotiations for the retention of workers in the company.

The union claims that MOL, with the tacit approval of the government, is constantly violating contractual obligations, and besides retail, is gradually shutting down INA’s research activities as well as refinery processing.