July 18 (SeeNews) - Croatia's High Administrative Court has cancelled the decision of the economy ministry to revoke the exploration permit of oil and gas group INA [ZSE:INA-R-A] in the Sava exploration area, the company said.
According to the decision of the court, INA was stripped of its Sava exploration licence without a valid reason, the oil and gas company said in a statement on Tuesday.
The dispute dates back to July 2011 when the ministry of economy cancelled the exploration licences of INA in the areas of Sava, Drava and Northwestern Croatia, claiming that the company had failed to meet its contractual obligations.
INA won a court case against the decision back in 2011, but in 2014 and 2015 the economy ministry again revoked the licences, claiming that the company was failing to meet its investment commitments.
INA has exploration and production operations in Croatia, Africa and the Middle East and operates a network of filling stations in its home market and in neighbouring countries.
Hungarian group MOL is the biggest shareholder in INA with a 49.08% stake.