MOSCOW (MRC) -- Serbia has agreed on all terms on the sale of the petrochemicals producer HIP Petrohemija to Russian-controlled Serbian oil and gas company NIS, according to SeeNews with reference to President Aleksandar Vucic's statement.
"Everything has been agreed and I can say that this is an important piece of news for the workers of the company," Vucic said in a video file posted on the website of Tanjug news agency on Wednesday.
Dragan Stevanovic, state secretary at the economy ministry, said last month that the government officially started talks for the sale of Petrohemija to NIS, in which Russia's Gazprom owns a 56.15% stake.
"A total of 10% of the costs of Petrohemija depends on the price of gas, and the only people with whom we can reach such an agreement are the Russians," Vucic said.
NIS placed the sole bid in the government tender for selecting a strategic partner in HIP Petrohemija in October. The strategic partner intends to inject EUR150 million (USD168 million) in the capital of HIP Petrohemija, acquiring a stake of up to 90% in the company's capital.
As MRC informed earlier, in 2014, HIP Petrohemija began preparations for the integration of production with the Serbian NIS. The expansion and deepening of the industrial and technological ties of the companies, initiated by the government, was to be completed by March 2014. The facilities of both companies are located in the town of Pancevo, northeast of Belgrade.
It was also reported that in late 2012, HIP Petrohemija completed the modernization and expansion of a high density polyethylene (HDPE) plant. The capacity of the new unit increased by 30% and became over 90,000 tonnes per year. Somewhat earlier, an ethylene plant with a capacity of 200,000 tonnes per year was put into operation. The HDPE plant and ethylene plant had been closed since early September 2011 when the renovation and expansion project began.
The Serbian government owns a 75.27% stake in the capital of HIP Petrohemija, NIS owns 20.86%, Russia's Lukoil controls 3.09%, while the remainder is in the hands of smaller shareholders.
HIP Petrohemija owns petrochemical complexes in Pancevo, Elemir and Crepaja. It specialises in producing high-density polyethylene (HDPE), low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and other petrochemical products with an annual production capacity of 700,000 tonnes.
MRC