JANAF’s license for oil transport to NIS extended by 60 days

JANAF has had its license for oil transport to the refinery in Pančevo, Serbia, owned by the Oil Industry of Serbia (NIS), extended for 60 days, as reported on Saturday by the Government and JANAF. The Government announced that the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued an extension of the license to JANAF yesterday, allowing the implementation of the contract between JANAF and NIS and the transport of oil through JANAF’s pipeline to the Republic of Serbia.

– The Government of the Republic of Croatia has actively collaborated with the relevant U.S. authorities throughout the process of obtaining the license in coordination with JANAF and has provided support to this strategic state company. Considering that 95 percent of oil transport to Serbia occurs via JANAF’s pipeline, the obtained 60-day license enables stable operations for JANAF. It is important to emphasize that this oil is exclusively of non-Russian origin, the Government’s statement reads.

JANAF states that it has obtained the license for an additional 60 days in coordination with the Government and with the support of its American lawyers.

– We believe that during this period, conditions will be created and all necessary approvals will be secured for the uninterrupted fulfillment of contractual obligations to NIS, JANAF stated.

The administration of former U.S. President Joe Biden imposed sanctions on two of the largest Russian oil producers on January 10, just days before the end of its term. These sanctions also affected NIS, which is majority-owned by Russian Gazprom Neft and Gazprom, with whom JANAF has a contract for the transport of crude oil for the period from January 1, 2024, to December 31, 2026.

The contract reserves JANAF’s transport capacities on a ‘full for empty’ basis for a total quantity of 10 million tons of oil.

The Serbian government sold NIS to Russian Gazprom Neft in 2008, and according to data from the Central Securities Registry, Gazprom Neft and Gazprom hold 56.15 percent ownership, while 29.87 percent is owned by Serbia.

After the imposition of sanctions, the ownership structure was partially changed as Russian Gazprom Neft transferred its approximately five percent stake to Gazprom, as that gas company is not under sanctions. This transaction reduced Gazprom Neft’s ownership stake in NIS in an effort to avoid sanctions against NIS in Serbia.