Šušnjar: In the dispute between Janaf, MOL and Slovnaft, all arguments are on Croatia's side

“Croatia will be very happy to join the proceedings before the European Commission (EC) and the competent European bodies, because all arguments are on its side regarding MOL and Slovnaft's appeal to the Commission,” said Economy Minister Ante Šušnjar on Thursday.

Noting that he had not seen MOL's statement, Minister Ante Šušnjar said that, as far as the relationship between Janaf and MOL is concerned, Janaf is here to honor all contractual obligations.

MOL and Slovnaft have addressed the European Commission's Directorate-General for Competition, expressing concern that Janaf's practices are further increasing concerns about the security of supply related to the Croatian section of the Adria oil pipeline.

In a letter sent by the companies to the EC, they state that Janaf informed MOL and Slovnaft that it would only accept crude oil that had already been purchased and planned for delivery if MOL and Slovnaft agreed to purchase additional quantities and feed them into JANAF's system as "push oil".

The request from the Adria pipeline operator surprised MOL, as this had not previously been a problem in its cooperation with Janaf and was not mentioned in the contract. Moreover, it could be contrary to the terms of the contract signed by the companies, MOL said in a statement.

Šušnjar, in turn, said in a statement after a Government session that Janaf and the Croatian state guarantee that Janaf can deliver 15 million tons of oil per year to Hungary and Slovakia for two MOL refineries.

“These are two refineries owned by MOL and that is their total annual capacity,” he said, adding that, as far as he knows, the oil transport contract between Janaf and MOL concerns somewhere around two million tons of oil per year, and MOL takes over somewhere under one million tons, he stated.

“So, their objections to the price issue are unfounded, because the math is simple - the larger the quantities, the lower the price,” he pointed out.

He added that the quantities being transported are less than half of those contracted, so Croatia, he pointed out, would be very happy to join the proceedings before the Commission and the competent European bodies, because we have all the arguments on our side.

Asked how difficult the current situation is for Janaf, he replied that it is not ideal because the capacities it has at its disposal are not filled, but that Janaf has so far offered itself as part of the solution.

“First of all, there is the Oil Industry of Serbia (NIS), which is one of the key partners, and we also have MOL, which drives as much as it drives. The situation in Janaf is stable, all the stress tests that have been conducted show that Janaf can operate stably for a very long time, but Janaf is working quite a lot on diversifying its business, investing in other projects from renewable sources, so that in the event of such situations it will have a secure source of income and stable business,” said Šušnjar.

When asked if it was really possible for Croatia to become a part of NIS, he said that it was never an option for the Republic of Croatia to buy a stake in NIS, but that Janaf, as a partner of NIS, is ready to be part of the solution, so it has no pretensions to dominate retail markets, as some who entered Croatia as partners did.

“If we can be part of the solution, if we are acceptable as a partner, and as a partner with NIS we have done very well and for a very long time, we are ready to be part of that solution,” he said.

Source: HRT