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Gas flows from Hungary to Ukraine suddenly stop: here’s what’s behind it
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Natural gas shipments from Hungary to Ukraine have abruptly stopped, marking the first prolonged interruption in more than two years.
Until the start of April, roughly 8–10 million cubic metres of gas per day had been crossing the Hungarian-Ukrainian border. However, from 1 April, the pipeline effectively emptied overnight, with no further deliveries recorded since, according to market reports and pipeline flow data.
The sudden halt comes just days after Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced that Hungary would gradually curb gas exports to Ukraine due to a dispute over the Druzhba oil pipeline.
Yet despite the political timing, traders say the immediate stoppage is not the result of the Hungarian government’s new restriction.
Why the government decree is not yet responsible
Last week, the Hungarian government issued a decree banning transmission system operator FGSZ from launching capacity auctions for the third quarter, effectively preventing new gas transit bookings to Ukraine from July onwards.
This means the legal restriction has not yet entered into force for current flows, because the pipeline capacity for the second quarter had already been auctioned earlier, G7 reported.
As a result, traders who purchased capacity rights are still technically able to ship gas through the Beregdaróc–Beregszász interconnection.
That is why the current shutdown is being linked instead to a lack of Ukrainian demand, rather than direct government intervention.
No buyers on the Ukrainian side
According to traders cited by Hungarian media, Ukrainian companies simply did not sign new commercial contracts for the new quarter, leaving already-booked transport capacity unused.
This reportedly means sellers have already paid the fixed auction fees for cross-border transmission rights, yet are now forced to leave that capacity idle, creating direct losses.
Poland route also falls silent
The Hungarian route is not the only one affected.
In recent months, Ukraine had also been importing similar daily volumes from Poland, but that corridor reportedly also fell to zero from the same date, HVG reported.
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Hungary remains a crucial gas corridor for Ukraine
Despite the current halt, Hungary is one of Ukraine’s most important gas supply routes.
Last year, Ukraine increased imports after repeated Russian strikes damaged domestic energy infrastructure. Around 2.9 billion cubic metres of gas reportedly entered Ukraine from the Hungarian direction, making Hungary one of Kyiv’s top import corridors.