According to the Serbian business media outlet Parametar, the Bulgarian state-owned company Bulgargaz has received a 10-year license for wholesale natural gas supplies in Serbia, opening the door for yet another major regional player to compete for Serbian consumers.
As Parametar analyzed, the significance of this decision lies not merely in the emergence of yet another licensed company. Bulgargaz has its own procurement portfolio and access to gas infrastructure in several Central and Southeastern European countries.
The company already holds the necessary licenses and permits to trade and supply gas in Greece, Romania, Hungary, and Slovakia, and operates in Moldova through its subsidiary, Bulgargaz North.
Of particular importance to Serbia is the interconnector with Bulgaria, with a capacity of approximately 1.8 billion cubic meters per year. Via Bulgaria, the Serbian market can receive Azerbaijani gas, as well as LNG arriving in the region through Greek terminals.
Bulgargaz will potentially be able to offer large Serbian enterprises a comprehensive supply package—from LNG procurement and regasification to transportation through Bulgaria and delivery of gas to Serbia.
For now, however, the discussion is limited to obtaining a license. Bulgargaz has not yet announced any major contracts with Serbian consumers. Therefore, the key indicator of a genuine market entry will be the booking of cross-border capacity and the signing of the first contracts.
The Serbian gas market is formally open to competition, but in reality remains highly concentrated. According to the latest complete AERS data for 2024, the state-owned company Srbijagas accounted for about 78% of gas sales to end consumers, Novi Sad-Gas for about 3.9%, Yugorosgaz for 3.2%, and each of the remaining suppliers accounted for less than 2%.
At the same time, the market infrastructure is changing. There are three gas transmission system operators in Serbia: Transportgas Srbija, Gastrans, and Yugorosgaz-Transport. In 2026, Transportgas received an operating license, and Serbia joined the regional platform for booking gas transmission capacity, which should facilitate new suppliers’ access to cross-border routes.
The arrival of Bulgargaz does not in itself mean lower prices or a significant redistribution of the market. However, if the Bulgarian company begins to actually supply gas to Serbian industrial enterprises, the Serbia-Bulgaria interconnector will gradually transform from infrastructure for diversifying supplies into a tool for real competition among suppliers.
According to the Serbian business publication Parametar, construction of the first phase of a new plant to manufacture electric motors for drones is nearing completion in the village of Kotraža near Lučani. The equipment has already been delivered, some employees have been hired and are undergoing training, and production is expected to begin in early October.
In the first phase, the plant is expected to employ about 50 people; after the completion of all three phases, the workforce will grow to 60–70 employees. Earlier reports mentioned the possibility of expanding the workforce to 150 employees. The plant’s projected production capacity is up to 40,000 motors per month.
Businessman Milenko Kostić stated that the idea to establish the production facility came from Želko Mitrović. For the small town of Dragacheva, the project is significant not only from a technological standpoint: the plant is effectively being created as a new industrial employment hub in a rural area.
According to Serbian Economist, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury has extended the operating license of the Serbian oil company NIS until October 30, 2026, allowing the company to continue its current operations after the previous permit expires on September 30.
The license extension means that NIS will be able to continue its operations, including the purchase and refining of crude oil, the production of petroleum products, and their supply to the Serbian market.
NIS has been subject to U.S. sanctions due to the company’s ownership structure and the involvement of Russian capital. Gazprom and Gazprom Neft entities remain the key Russian shareholders, while the Serbian government holds a large minority stake.
For Serbia, the issue of NIS’s operations is of strategic importance. The company operates the country’s only oil refinery in Pančevo and the largest network of gas stations, and it also holds key positions in the supply of petroleum products to the domestic market.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has previously stated on multiple occasions that Belgrade is negotiating with the U.S. side in an effort to ensure the uninterrupted operation of NIS while simultaneously finding a long-term solution to the issue of Russian ownership.
The one-month extension of the operating license eliminates the immediate risk of the company ceasing operations in early October, but it does not definitively resolve the issue of sanctions. In effect, Belgrade and NIS shareholders have been granted additional time to find a model for changing the ownership structure that is acceptable to OFAC.
Separately, negotiations are ongoing regarding the possible sale of the Russian stake. Throughout 2026, potential participants in the future deal included Hungary’s MOL and the UAE’s ADNOC, but the final structure of a possible deal has not yet been agreed upon.
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Serbia’s presidential election may take place on December 13, 2026—this date is currently considered the most likely, according to the Serbian business news site Parametar, citing the Center for Local Self-Government (CLS).
According to the center, the presidential election would in that case be scheduled after the conclusion of the parliamentary election, and the campaign would last no more than 30 days.
However, the CLS emphasizes that a final decision has not yet been made and other options remain on the table.
Early presidential elections became necessary after Aleksandar Vučić resigned on September 27, ending his second presidential term early.
Ana Brnabić, Speaker of the National Assembly, has assumed the duties of acting president. Under Serbian law, the speaker of parliament may serve as acting head of state for no more than three months.
Following the early termination of the presidential term, an election must be held no later than three months thereafter. There must be no fewer than 30 and no more than 60 days between the official announcement of the election and Election Day.
Thus, the deadline for holding the presidential election is December 27, 2026; therefore, the date of December 13 cited by CLS falls within the timeframe prescribed by law.
Serbia’s political landscape now presents an unusual configuration. First, the country will hold early parliamentary elections, after which a new parliamentary composition is expected to take shape; then, Serbs will have to elect a new president.
Vucic himself stated after his resignation that he intends to participate in the parliamentary election campaign as an ordinary citizen.
Therefore, the December presidential election could become the second key vote for Serbia in less than two months and finally determine the new power structure following the conclusion of Vučić’s nine-year presidency.
The candidates for president have not yet been definitively determined.
Ukrainian businessman, former member of parliament, and one of the most prominent major investors in Ukraine’s metallurgical industry, Vadim Novinsky, has been granted Serbian citizenship, according to the Serbian business portal Parametar.
According to Parametar, the decision to grant Novinsky citizenship of the Republic of Serbia was made by the country’s government on September 24, 2026, and published in the official “Službeni Glasnik.” The document was signed by Serbian Prime Minister Džuro Matsut.
Novinsky was born on June 3, 1963, in Staraya Russa, in what is now Russia, but he has built a significant portion of his business career in Ukraine. He obtained Ukrainian citizenship in 2012.
In Ukraine, Novinsky is best known as the founder of Smart Holding and a long-time partner of Rinat Akhmetov’s SCM Group in the mining and metallurgical group Metinvest. Smart Holding held a 23.76% stake in Metinvest. The group’s business interests also spanned shipbuilding, the agricultural sector, real estate, and other areas.
In late 2022, Novinsky announced that he had transferred his assets to a trust. Metinvest subsequently stated that Novinsky is not a beneficiary of the company and does not exercise actual control over it.
Novinsky was also involved in politics. From 2013 to 2022, he served as a member of the Ukrainian Parliament for several terms, first as part of the Party of Regions faction and later as part of the “Opposition Bloc.”
In December 2022, Ukraine imposed personal sanctions against Novinsky. In January 2025, the State Bureau of Investigations and the Security Service of Ukraine reported that the former People’s Deputy was suspected of high treason and inciting religious hatred. Ukrainian media identified the suspect as Vadym Novinsky. The businessman himself denied the charges against him and called them politically motivated.
In June 2025, Ukrainian law enforcement agencies also reported an investigation into possible tax evasion totaling more than 4 billion UAH involving the former lawmaker, whom the media identified as Novinsky. At this point, these are allegations and investigations, not final, legally binding convictions.
After the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Novinsky publicly spoke out against the war.
Serbian authorities have not yet publicly disclosed the specific reasons for granting Novinsky citizenship, nor have they reported on any potential investment projects by the businessman in Serbia.
Source: Serbian business portal Parametar.
According to the Serbian business publication Parametar, the Serbian oil and gas company NIS has submitted a new request to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury for a special license that would allow the company to continue its operations beyond September 30. The current license expires on that very day.
NIS emphasizes that the company’s uninterrupted operations, the stable operation of the oil refinery in Pančevo, and the regular supply of petroleum products to the Serbian market are crucial for the country’s energy stability.
U.S. sanctions against NIS were imposed in early 2025 due to Russian ownership stakes in the company. Since then, OFAC has repeatedly issued temporary licenses allowing NIS to continue its operations.
At the same time, the process of restructuring NIS’s ownership continues. Hungary’s MOL is in negotiations with Gazprom Neft regarding the acquisition of a 56.15% stake in NIS. In June, the Serbian government and MOL already signed a shareholders’ agreement outlining the future governance model for the company should the deal be finalized.
To finalize the deal, not only is a purchase and sale agreement between MOL and Gazprom Neft required, but also additional approvals from regulatory authorities, primarily OFAC. Serbia has also agreed to the possibility of increasing its stake in NIS by another 5 percentage points.
Serbian authorities had previously reported that a company from the UAE might also participate in the future structure of the deal. This refers to the possible entry of a Middle Eastern investor into NIS’s capital following the completion of the deal with MOL.
As of June 30, 2026, Gazprom Neft owned 44.85% of NIS, the Republic of Serbia owned 29.87%, and another 11.3% was held by JSC Intelligence. The remaining shares are held by minority investors.
NIS remains Serbia’s key oil company. It owns an oil refinery in Pančevo, and the company’s network of gas stations also operates in neighboring countries in the region.
Currently, the main question for the Serbian energy market is whether OFAC will extend the license before the current permit expires on September 30, while negotiations regarding the change in NIS ownership are still ongoing.
