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NIS Published Consolidated Business Results of the Company Group for Nine Months of 2014

November 5, 2014

The downturn of external economic conditions had a negative impact on NIS' financial indicators. Based on the results for nine months of 2014, the clear profit of NIS group amounted to 21 billion dinar, which is by 33% below the same indicator last year. Among the negative factors impacting the national energy sector, the most influential were devaluation of domestic currency exchange rate for dollar and euro, sluggish demand in the petroleum products market, as well as the global drop in hydrocarbon prices. In addition, the profit tax for large investors went up. The range of direct and indirect tax liabilities of NIS group, according to the results for first nine months of 2014, including excise, profit tax and other tax expenditures, exceeds the last year's indicator by 10%, and it amounts to 97.9 billion dinar. The balance of overdue debts of public companies based on payment for goods and services to NIS, as of end-September 2014, amount to around 60 billion dinar. Due to a lack of positive trend in the settlement of accounts payable, the Company was compelled to continue cutting down the investment program for 2014. The scope of NIS' capital investments, according to the results of the reporting period, amounted to 26.9 billion dinar, which is by 29% below the same indicator in 2013. NIS had to provide for the insufficient funds for the priority investment projects by increasing its bank debt. Pursuant to the results for nine months of 2014, the sum of NIS' external debt amounted to 744 million dollar, which exceeds the last year's indicator by 53%. NIS' hydrocarbon output slightly dropped in the reporting period (-1%) compared to the same indicator for 2013, and it amounted to 1.209 million tons of oil equivalent. According to the results for the nine months of 2014, the refining volume totalled 2.252 million tons, or 2% higher than in the same period last year. NIS' petroleum products sales in this period amounted to 2.253 million tons, exceeding the last year's indicator by 3%. According to the results for nine months of 2014, NIS' retail dropped by 5% compared to the same indicator last year, down to the level of 484,000 tons. The negative impact on the retail was chiefly exerted by flood damage in May 2014 - a sudden drop in fuel consumption by wide social strata. As reported in expert assessments, the sales volume at domestic petroleum products market was reduced by 2%. As a result of putting the top quality branded Diesel on the market, the total NIS' motor fuel sales volume rose by 8% compared to the same period last year, and it amounted 1.290 million tons. The motor fuel sales volumes in the Serbian market increased by 2%. The Company managed to maintain the last year's level of its share in the national petroleum products market. NIS increased its petroleum products sales volumes in foreign markets up to 115,000 tons, or twice the result for the same period last year. Commenting on the NIS' performance results for nine months of 2014, the Chief Executive Officer, Kirill Kravchenko, said: "The economic situation in which NIS operates today, as we have anticipated, is significantly worse than last year. The negative trend can be perceived in all key factors - from prices of basic energy generating units to increase in demand. With an aim of preserving competitiveness and stable business operations, we invest additional efforts to improve our internal efficiency and control expenditures and production costs, which have already started producing positive results. We work on harmonization of mid-term NIS development results against contemporary market conditions, starting from state of Serbian economy and external state of business".