Gas storage in Hungary full – UPDATE

Photo: MTI

All gas storage reserves in Hungary are fully topped up, guaranteeing domestic supplies for the winter, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said on Tuesday in Moscow.

“The situation of Hungary’s energy supply is at a turning point,” the minister said after meeting Gazprom chief executive Alexei Miller. “Never before has every single gas storage facility been completely full,” he said, adding that 6.3 billion cubic meters of gas is now being stored in Hungarian gas storage facilities.

“For the coming winter, Hungary’s gas supply has never been as safe and secure,” Szijjártó said.

He also noted that Hungarian energy company MVM and the Hungarian state were making money on the back of Gazprom renting 950 million cubic meters of gas storage for supplies to the south and west, he added.

Szijjártó said he had agreed with his Russian partners on starting “substantive” talks concerning supplies for 2020-2021. “We are now in a position to plan about a year and a half ahead,” he said.

Bulgaria’s authorities have signed the export permit under which Russian gas could be transported to Hungary vial Bulgaria and Serbia, the minister said, adding that an annual 10 billion cubic metres of gas could be obtained through that route.

Technical plan Paks expansion approved

Szijjártó has welcomed approval of the technical plan for the expansion of the country’s sole nuclear power station at Paks.

“This is a major milestone in preparations,” the minister told MTI.

“Now, more than 300 permits have been obtained, including the important environmental permit.”

The first three of the support buildings for construction have been granted a building permit and the first of these, the main contractor’s office building, is being built, he noted, adding that the timetable for elaborating the 300,000-page development licence — to be submitted to the licensing authority next summer — is well on track.