Russian energy giant Gazprom has sold its entire direct stake of 11.3 percent minus one share in Serbian oil company NIS, leaving it with just a single share compared to over 18.4 million before the transaction. The sale comes amid US sanctions targeting Russian ownership in the Serbian energy sector.
The stake was acquired by Intelligence, a company founded in 2020 and managed by Gazprom Capital, a wholly owned Gazprom subsidiary set up to raise financing through bond placements. Intelligence confirmed it had purchased exactly 18,433,297 NIS shares, effectively taking over the divested holdings. No further details on the terms of the transfer were disclosed.
NIS has been under US scrutiny since January, when the Treasury included the Serbian company in sanctions against Russia’s oil and gas sector. At that time, GazpromNeft held 50 percent of NIS, while Gazprom controlled 6.15 percent. A subsequent transfer of 5.15 percent from GazpromNeft to Gazprom increased Gazprom’s stake to 11.3 percent. Gazprom itself was not directly sanctioned.
In July, Serbian Energy Minister Dubravka Djedovic indicated that steps were being taken to reduce uncertainty around NIS, including appointing a government representative as deputy board chairman and adding two independent directors to comply with US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) requirements. Despite these measures, NIS requested a seventh postponement of the sanctions’ enforcement, scheduled to begin on 26 September, having previously sought removal from the sanctions list in March.
Sanctions have already affected NIS’ operations. The company posted a net loss of roughly 30.7 million euros in the first half of 2025, reversing a net profit of 45.3 million euros over the same period in 2024.
Current ownership of NIS stands at 44.85 percent for GazpromNeft, 29.87 percent for the Serbian government, and 13.98 percent held by minority shareholders.
