Adnoc tipped to buy Russian stake in Serbian oil refinery

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) is reportedly the top contender to buy Russia’s controlling stake in Serbia’s only oil refinery.

The UAE state-backed oil major is leading the race to acquire the stake in Servian Oil Industry (NIS), the Financial Times reported, quoting four unidentified sources.

The potential sale comes after the US imposed sanctions on the Russian oil companies Lukoil and Rosneft in October, an attempt to put pressure on Moscow to end the war in Ukraine.

The Serbian company, which operates the Pančevo refinery, located 26km from Belgrade, is also in talks with other potential bidders, including Hungary’s state oil company MOL, the report said.

The value of the stake has not been disclosed.

NIS is 56 percent owned by two subsidiaries of Russian energy major Gazprom. The Belgrade government holds about 30 percent, while small shareholders hold the remaining stake.

However, NIS’s 2024 filing values its assets at $4.7 billion, of which nearly $2.6 billion corresponds to the Russian owners’ stake, the newspaper said.

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The Pančevo refinery has a maximum annual design capacity of 4.8 million tonnes, according to the NIS website.

Last week, the state-run Iraq News Agency reported that the Iraqi government was holding talks with US oil companies about selling Lukoil’s stake in the West Qurna-2 oil field, following sanctions imposed on the Russian company.

Abu Dhabi conglomerate International Holding Company has already informed the US Treasury this month that it was interested in buying Lukoil’s foreign assets.