U.S. Grants Sanctions Waiver to Russian-Owned Serbian Oil Firm
The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control extended a sanctions waiver for Naftna Industrija Srbije to facilitate the sale of Russian stakes to Hungary's MOL.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control granted a new sanctions waiver to Naftna Industrija Srbije, a Russian-owned oil company in Serbia, extending the exemption until December 11. The waiver allows the company to continue importing crude oil while its Russian majority ownership is transferred to the Hungarian energy firm MOL.
Naftna Industrija Srbije was originally sanctioned in October 2025 as part of broader U.S. measures targeting the Russian energy sector following the invasion of Ukraine. The company currently manages Serbia's only oil refinery and provides approximately 80% of the domestic market demand.
The current waiver supports the divestment of a combined 56% stake held by Gazprom Neft and Gazprom. This transition aims to remove Russian control from a critical piece of Serbian energy infrastructure while maintaining the country's fuel supply during the ownership shift.
