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MOSCOW, July 21Hungary faces an energy crisis due to Ukraine stopping the transit of Russian oil through its territory, writes Politico.
“The measures taken by Ukraine could create a difficult situation,” said Ilona Gizinska, an expert on Hungary from the think tank Center for Eastern Studies.
According to her forecasts, Budapest could face a sharp increase in energy prices and power shortages in just a few weeks. The country will have to start tapping into strategic energy reserves that will only last for three months, the report said.
«Any prolonged interruption in supplies will force regional oil refineries to use up their reserves, deplete them and at the same time look for some kind of diplomatic solution to the issue,” says Victor Katona, leading oil analyst at Kpler.
Earlier this week, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjártó announced the cessation of Lukoil oil transit to the republic through Ukraine. The Ministry of Economy of Slovakia also announced this the day before. At the same time, the department noted that Slovnaft is provided with supplies of Russian fuel from another supplier, but Bratislava is discussing the current situation with Kiev.
In December 2022, Western countries introduced sanctions prohibiting the supply of Russian oil to the European Union by sea. The exception only concerned the Druzhba pipeline, since otherwise it would be difficult for several landlocked countries to find alternative suppliers.
However, Russian oil has not been pumped to Germany via Druzhba since the beginning of 2023, and to Poland since February of the same year.
The oil pipeline originates in Almetyevsk, passes through Bryansk and then branches into two sections: the northern one (through Belarus in the direction of Poland and Germany) and the southern one (through Ukraine in the direction of Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic).