MOL said in a statement it learnt from the media that "certain members of the Supervisory Board" had sent a letter to the Croatian government and a portion of the letter had been published in the Croatian media. MOL is displeased and concerned that several facts mentioned in the article "are incorrect, misinterpreted and represent INA's standings and MOL's intentions in a false manner."

"As we stated already before, in the current situation the nomination of the Ministers of Economy and Finance of the Croatian Government to the Supervisory Board of INA would certainly be a good move making possible for the Government to get first hand information both about the real tendencies and results and also the untruth of all incorrect, false and misinterpreted facts and information that were stated in the published parts of the letter about INA's financial situation, investments and performance," the statement said.

"We believe that INA is managed well, it is making profit, its investments have been speeded up and the management is doing well. As a result INA is becoming stronger and more successful and it is on the path to become a regional leader. And the close co-operation with MOL based on mutual respect and sharing strength and knowledge makes INA stronger," MOL said.

The four Croatian members of the INA Supervisory Board recently sent a letter to the government calling for dismissal of Zoltan Aldott because of the present situation in the company. The Croatian members of the Supervisory Board are Davor Stern, Gordana Sekulic, Damir Vandjelic and representative of the employees Maja Rilovic.

They urged the government to begin negotiations to amend the shareholders' agreement because although it has only 2.4% fewer shares than MOL, which has less than 50%, it has no management rights and cannot influence what is going on in INA.

The letter was prompted by a Supervisory Board meeting, held in late May, at which the MOL representatives demanded a discussion on the statements given by members of the Management and Supervisory Boards at the corruption trial of former Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader, according to media reports.

Finance Minister Slavko Linic said in a comment on this issue that serious talks with MOL were necessary. "We've had enough of INA being neglected, because this Croatian company can be a very significant regional player," Linic told reporters at an election convention of his Social Democratic Party on Saturday. He added that Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic should decide whether Croatian government ministers would sit on INA's Supervisory Board.