iPhone | iPad
Android
Huawei
Binghatti Ghost will comprise 700 residential units
KT APPDOWNLOAD
Serbia, Russia reach deal on NIS oil company sale
BELGRADE - Serbia and Russia have reached a deal on the sale of the Balkan country's oil monopoly NIS, Serbia's energy ministry said on Monday.
"An agreement has been reached and initialled" earlier in the day, ministry spokesman Milan Budimir told AFP.
"The deal on NIS was initialled and the accord will be signed in the coming days in Moscow at the highest level, by Serbian President (Boris) Tadic and Russia's (Dmitry) Medvedev," Budimir said.
Several private media outlets in Serbia reported the signing ceremony for the major energy agreement would be held on Wednesday.
Under the agreement originally agreed in January, Russian energy giant Gazprom was to construct part of the South Stream gas pipeline and an underground gas storage facility in Serbia.
Budimir said "everything regarding NIS is agreed and initialised page by page," but refused to say whether negotiations were still ongoing for the two gas projects.
Earlier, Beta news agency quoted Serbian state energy secretary Dusan Mrakic as saying the accord was for the sale of "51 percent of NIS to the Russians for 400 million euros (560 million dollars)."
In September, independent consulting company Deloitte estimated that NIS was worth 2.2 billion euros (3.1 billion dollars) in its entirety.
But Gazprom has agreed to invest 500 million euros in NIS by 2012 despite the global financial crisis, as well as to finance a social program for workers that would have to leave the company, according to Serbian media.
The negotiations on the sale of NIS provoked rift in the Serbian government earlier this month.
A deputy prime minister, Mladjan Dinkic, quit the team negotiating the deal saying Russia provided no guarantees on the construction of the pipeline and storage facility.
More news from
The iPhone 16, Apple Watch 10, AirPods 4 and more
The 6.74-foot-tall device can make and receive calls, send texts, and performs several other functions just like a regular Apple iPhone
Advancing AI capabilities on-the-go for Arabic-speaking regions
Stylist to the stars Tabesh Khoja says the thing to remember is that 'not everything suits everyone'
The campaign targets all population segments, including citizens, residents, employees in both government and private sectors, and healthcare workers
In temperate climates, influenza outbreaks typically occur during the winter, while in tropical regions, it can cause sporadic outbreaks throughout the year
26-year-old Sarah Rocio Provenzani delivers a special message of hope and love with her songs