Serbia’s President, Alexander Vucic, believes that the US is likely to impose sanctions on the critical energy company, NIS, in the near future. To mitigate the potential impact, the politician has developed a plan. In a statement on Serbian radio, Vucic said that the country is prepared to buy the Russian part of NIS in the worst-case scenario, at a value of around 600 million euros, if the Russian stake is estimated to be worth a billion euros.
However, the president emphasized that it would be better if this scenario did not occur, questioning the purpose of the planned US sanctions against NIS, as the money would immediately go to Russia. The only uncertainties remain, according to Vucic, being the scope of the Russian stake and the timeline of the sanctions.
The president claimed to have requested a long timeline for the sanctions, which could be imposed as early as January 10-13, according to his statement. Prior to this, Vucic had announced that he would discuss the matter with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, at a government meeting in Belgrade, describing the expropriation of Russian shareholders as the “last resort” that Serbia would consider, only if it were a matter of life or death.
NIS, one of the largest energy companies in Southeastern Europe, operates independently, with its refining facilities in Pančevo and Novi Sad, and a power plant, employing over 10,000 people and contributing nine percent of the Serbian state budget annually.