Fuel deliveries restricted, many petrol stations may be forced to close in Hungary

Hungarian oil and gas company MOL has temporarily restricted fuel deliveries to retailers with whom MOL has no service obligation, the company said in a statement on Friday.

The restrictions are in place for unlimited time and are aimed at maintaining services in all regions of Hungary, the statement said. The measure was prompted by surging demand due to the fuel price cap and falling imports as pressure in the Druzhba pipeline has been low since the suspension of operations earlier this week. MOL’s own Dunai refinery is also facing maintenance issues, the company said.

The restrictions will affect 194 retailers, operating 10 percent of petrol stations in Hungary, it said. MOL is fulfilling all its contracts and reviewing its distribution strategy each week to stay on top of the situation, the statement said.

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The Independent Petrol Stations Association (FBSZ) called MOL’s decision “unacceptable”. In a letter addressed to the prime minister and MOL’s chairman-CEO, the FBSZ said it was “unacceptable” for a strategic company to restrict deliveries to hundreds of its partners citing supply security. The association called for the decision to be overruled immediately.

FBSZ said the measure would affect 258 Hungarian small businesses, most of them family-owned, and some 400 petrol stations, putting 20 percent of the country’s pumps into a “hopeless situation”. The association recommended that Hungary’s strategic reserves be freed up with a view to guaranteeing fuel supply to the rural parts of the country.