The founder of the “Energija Balkana” portal, Jelica Putniković, stated for RTS that Serbia will not face serious energy problems, even if U.S. sanctions are imposed on NIS (Oil Industry of Serbia). She emphasized that in case of a disruption in supply via the Adriatic oil pipeline, existing reserves, which are sufficient for more than two months, will ensure stability. If the crisis persists, she added, derivatives will be imported additionally.
Regarding the potential U.S. sanctions on NIS due to Russian ownership, Putniković believes Serbia will not experience serious energy issues, even if sanctions are imposed. “I don’t think prices will skyrocket because, in addition to NIS, which has its own gas stations, we also have Hungarian MOL, Austrian OMV and Greek Hellenic Petroleum, which buy most of their derivatives from NIS, or from the Pančevo refinery, but also import,” Putniković emphasized.
She highlighted that, in case of a disruption in supply via the Adriatic oil pipeline, existing reserves, which are sufficient for over two months, would maintain stability. “If the crisis persists, derivatives will be imported additionally,” she added.
Putniković further explained that Serbia has been regulating retail fuel prices since the start of the Ukraine crisis, ensuring that the government will not allow the price of gasoline to double. “Some people have asked me if a liter of fuel will cost 400 dinars. I think there are people using this information to scare the public. We survived the 1990s sanctions,” she stated.
Discussing the importance of political ties with Hungary, Putniković reminded of the oil pipeline project to Hungary and the “Druzhba” pipeline. “This pipeline originates from the former Soviet Union, but it can transport other oil, not just Russian. I remind you that this decision was made by President Biden’s administration even before the U.S. elections. I doubt Trump would have accepted it. On the other hand, Serbia signed an interstate agreement on energy cooperation with the U.S. in September,” she recalled.
Putniković also mentioned that geopolitical narratives often appear in the media with the intent to intimidate the public. “Two years ago, NIS was targeted when it was announced that JANAF (Croatian oil pipeline company) would not transport Russian oil. At that time, NIS explained that it imports smaller quantities of Russian oil because economic logic dictates purchasing cheaper Iraqi oil,” said Putniković, the editor of the Energija Balkana portal.
When asked about the worst-case scenario, Putniković replied that it would be the disruption of oil deliveries via JANAF. “JANAF has only two major clients – Serbia and Hungary. Last year, Hungarians protested against high transport costs imposed by Croatia, and even the Hungarian government intervened to reduce these prices,” she pointed out.
Putniković also reminded that NIS was sold for 400 million euros in 2008 under an agreement between the Serbian government and Russia’s Gazprom. She raised the question of how much it would cost today to potentially return the majority ownership of NIS.
“It’s interesting that the critics are politicians who were part of the coalition that formed the Serbian government at the time of the sale of NIS,” Putniković added. “I would remind you that both Koštunica and Tadić went to Moscow for the signing of the famous agreement. It was an unusual situation, as the rule was that two heads of state couldn’t be in the same place, but the Russians made an exception. The agreement was signed by Velimir Ilić, who was the Minister of Infrastructure, not Energy at the time. This clearly shows that the sale of NIS was more of a political than an economic decision,” she believes.
Putniković pointed out that there could still be a debate on whether NIS could have been sold at a higher price. “Perhaps we could have sold it to Hungarian MOL, but let’s look at Croatia. They modernized their refineries and now export fuel to Hungary and even Bosnia. NIS invested in the Pančevo refinery, which is now one of the most modern in Europe and is profitable. Those who criticize NIS for extracting domestic oil should have thought about this before selling it,” she emphasized.
Putniković concluded by noting that Serbia has enough oil and gas reserves for the heating season, and citizens should not worry. “We will have heating because we have gas. Gazprom owns the gas pipeline and the underground storage in Banatski Dvor, but we also have reserves in Hungary. We will not freeze,” Jelica Putniković concluded.
