The Hungarian oil company MOL may offer the Croatian government its treasury shares in exchange for shares in the Croatian oil company INA, which could help toward solving the INA situation, MOL Group head Jozsef Molnar has said in an interview with the Hungarian business daily Napi Gazdasag.
The Hungarian company has the capacity for an acquisition of more than US$ 1 billion and is examining expansion targets in the region including the Polish oil refinery Lotos, Molnar said.
Commenting on the ongoing dispute concerning INA ownership, Molnar said MOL treasury stocks "can come in handy" in a resolution of the situation surrounding the company's Croatian subsidiary INA, and/or in any acquisition attempt whatsoever.
Molnar said he regarded the attacks on MOL as part of an internal political warfare in Croatia.
The capability of MOL to take out loans has improved recently since the Hungarian government bought a 21.2% stake in the company from the Russian oil and gas company Surgutneftegas for EUR 1.88 billion in a transaction closed on 6 July, but "right now there are not too many firms for sale worth buying", the MOL Group CEO told the Hungarian daily.
