Government: Hungary will buy Russian oil in the future

Hungary is in a special situation energy-wise since it can only receive its piped imports over land, an energy ministry official has said in an interview. This is why it was important that the government managed to obtain temporary EU exemptions and continue to buy Russian oil during negotiations on sanctions packages, Zsófia Koncz, state secretary of the energy ministry, told news portal Origo on Thursday.

Koncz said the left-wing accusation that the government had done nothing for the country’s energy independence was unjustified, arguing that the government had achieved “more since 2010 than anyone else before then”. In 2010, Hungary had only had two gas pipeline connectors: one with Austria and the other with Ukraine, she said. “Today, we have bi-directional interconnectors with six neighbouring countries to meet domestic needs,” she said, adding that increasing local extraction in a bid to reduce dependence on foreign supply is under way. “This work, however, cannot be completed overnight,” she said.

Concerning alternative energy sources, Koncz noted that Hungary’s solar energy capacities increased by 1,100 megawatts last year, exceeding 4,300 MW. “Our previous target was 6,000 MW for 2030 which can be achieved within the next couple of years and may be doubled … though this requires developing the network,” she said. The Hungarian government does not regard energy supplies as an ideological or business matter, Koncz said, adding that heating Hungarian homes and institutions must be guaranteed. The country has 1.9 billion cubic metres of natural gas held in reserves, she said.