ZAGREB, Aug 26 (Hina) - Croatia's Ina believes that the sale of Serbia's oil company Beopetrol was legally invalid, and the Croatian company has announced it will continue to take all legal steps before Serbian competent bodies and
international institutions in order to repossess its property in Serbia.
ZAGREB, Aug 26 (Hina) - Croatia's Ina believes that the sale of
Serbia's oil company Beopetrol was legally invalid, and the
Croatian company has announced it will continue to take all legal
steps before Serbian competent bodies and international
institutions in order to repossess its property in Serbia. #L#
Russia's Lukoil won a public tender for the purchase of almost 80
percent of Beopetrol's shares, offering EUR117 million in cash and
another EUR85 million in investments in the next five years. Now
negotiations are expected to be held by Serbia's authorities and
the Russians on signing a sales agreement.
Beopetrol controls 17 percent of the Serbian oil products market
and owns 187 petrol stations and a number of warehouses across the
country, illegally confiscated from the Croatian oil company,
Ina's, property in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1990. Ever
since December 1990, Ina has not had any access to its property in
Serbia.
On Tuesday, Ina issued a press release saying that it was very much
disappointed and embittered with the decision of the Serbian
privatisation agency to sell Beopetrol.
Ina recalls that it has so far on many occasions informed the
international and domestic public, business partners and those
interested in the privatisation of Beopetrol, as well as competent
bodies in Serbia, of the illegal confiscation of Ina's property in
that country, and that Ina has taken all legal steps in order to
prevent the illegitimate sale.
In addition, the sale of Ina's property, including Ina petrol
stations in Kosovo, represents a violation of the regulatory act
No.1999 which regulates the management of movable property and real
estate in Kosovo, Ina said in the press release.
Furthermore, the entire deal is illegal, given that it was
performed contrary to the rules and laws of the Republic of Serbia,
the press release said.
Ina's management fears that this illegal and unilateral act may
affect processes which have recently begun between the two
countries' companies and other economic subjects.
(hina) ms