natural gas

Serious gas explosion in Hungarian town, one person taken to hospital

gas explosion tapolca

A gas explosion occurred on Wednesday morning in an apartment in Tapolca, Hungary. One person was taken to hospital and the building was evacuated, the press spokesperson of the Veszprém County Emergency Management Directorate told the Hungarian News Agency (MTI).

Gas explosion in Tapolca

According to Veszprém County Emergency Management Directorate spokesperson Henrietta Csondor, the explosion occurred in an apartment in a ten-storey block of flats on Kazinczy Square, Tapolca. The gas explosion is believed to have occurred during the replacement of gas cylinders, knocking down several walls and tearing doors out of their places.

One person was taken to hospital and, in addition to the injured person, there was a dog in the apartment.

All the apartments in the building, 102 properties, were evacuated and the residents were temporarily housed in the neighbouring school.

A small fire was also started, a sofa was burning on about one square metre, but it was extinguished by neighbours before the firefighters arrived. The Tapolca municipal fire brigade and the fire brigades of Badacsonytomaj and Keszthely were called to the scene.

A rescue helicopter has also arrived on the scene. Experts are examining the structural condition of the building.

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Hungary gas reserves above July target level

tubes pipes energy gas reserves

With the heating season over, gas reserves in Hungary’s storage facilities is at 68 percent, exceeding the 37 percent ratio required by the European Union on 1 May, as well as the level required for 1 July, the energy ministry said on Wednesday.

The 4.5 billion cubic metres of gas in Hungary’s storage facilities is 1.5 times last year’s total household gas consumption, the ministry told MTI.

Thanks to the proper preparations over the winter, the amount of gas in the country’s underground stores never went below two thirds of capacity over the last ten months, it added.

Hungary’s 68 percent gas storage level even exceeds the 61 percent EU average, the ministry said.

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Azerbaijan supplies gas to Hungary for the first time in history

szijjártó azerbaijan

For the first time in history, natural gas deliveries have started from Azerbaijan to Hungary, which greatly contributes to Hungary’s diversification efforts in energy supply, the minister of foreign affairs and trade said in Baku on Thursday.

Speaking after a meeting of the Hungarian-Azeri mixed economic committee, Péter Szijjártó said both countries were hit hard by the effects of the war in Ukraine, but countries that can maintain good cooperation with the Caucasus region can adapt more successfully to the new conditions in energy supply, the ministry said in a statement.

He noted that, by diversification, Hungary means securing new resources of energy supply, and this is mostly possible from the southeast, rather than excluding well-functioning agreements. This is why the European Union has been asked to participate in the necessary infrastructure development, but they declined to provide support, he added.

“Therefore, from here on, Brussels has no say in where we fulfil our energy needs from; we will not accept any guidance or instructions on the matter,” Szijjártó said.

Following his talks with Azeri Minister of Labour Sahil Babayev, he said that a solution has nevertheless been found to the problem of diversification, partly thanks to Azerbaijan, as natural gas deliveries from that country have been started, in the amount of 55 million cubic metres in the first phase.

“And we will continue this cooperation, … we will take an increased amount from Azerbaijan in order to ensure the security of our natural gas supply,” Szijjártó said.

He noted that Hungarian oil and gas company MOL was already active in Azerbaijan, but its role will be further increased in the modernisation of extraction technologies and in the chemical industry.

In a few years, Azeri renewable energy could also become part of Hungary’s energy mix, Szijjártó said, with the construction of the world’s longest submarine cable, for which there is already a joint commitment from Hungary, Romania, Georgia and Azerbaijan.

Szijjártó: All conditions set to develop Hungary-Azeri cooperation

There are no open political issues between Hungary and Azerbaijan, so all the conditions are set for developing economic relations, with both governments determined to do so, the foreign minister said on Thursday.

The ministry cited Péter Szijjártó telling a Hungarian-Azeri business forum in Baku that the crisis-ridden years of the recent period proved that it was the correct government decision to develop strategic cooperation between the two countries. Despite all the criticism Hungary received, it was ten years ahead with this compared to others.

Recent years also showed that both the Hungarian and the Azeri governments were giving positive treatment to companies from each other’s country, he said.

The 120 million euro record high trade turnover of last year has proven this, as well as the fact that both MVM and Mol are present in Azerbaijan and Richter has already signed the documents for contract manufacturing of ninety drugs, he said. Hunland is supplying cattle to the country and Hell will soon start building a factory there, he added.

Serious preparations are underway to ensure Hungarian participation in railway, public road and hospital development projects, in water management, and Hungarian companies will be involved in rebuilding a settlement in Nagorno-Karabakh, he said.

He also said that two hundred Azeri students get scholarships to study at Hungarian universities each year, which offers an excellent opportunity for strengthening relations.

Commenting on the financial background of cooperation, he said the government had set up a central Asian investment fund and Eximbank launched a 50 million euro credit line which can be increased three-fold if necessary.

“Our presence here in Azerbaijan is increasingly robust and therefore everything is given for further Hungarian business successes here,” he said.

“We have with us here, among others, the best Hungarian agricultural, food industry, health industry, info-communications and water management companies that are ready for cooperation,” he added.

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Hungarian gas prices five times the market value

gas energy kitchen

Hungarians pay multiple times the market price for gas. At the current rate, the European gas market is at quite a low level, especially compared to the Hungarian gas prices.

The portion above the reduced amount in Hungary is now paid five times more by the people than the actual market price of gas. This is because the price has dropped to almost EUR 30 per megawatt-hour in Europe, similar to the level before the Russian-Ukranian war. There is an anticipated consistently low market price throughout the year, which would give the government ample room to reduce prices.

Surprising statistics

The government argues that restricting the reduction in utility bills won’t negatively affect families. Their argument stands on their estimation that 9 out of 10 households currently pay no more for gas than before. One individual interviewed by RTL said they avoid going over the average consumption by dressing warmer indoors and lowering the heating.

Due to colder weather, households used 5,4% more gas in the past three months compared to a year ago. However, the Energy Office data shows that even considering this statistic, there is a 38% decline compared to consumption two years ago.

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Effects of the war

For the past year and a half, the government has only provided utility bill reductions up to the average consumption. They attribute this limitation to the Russian-Ukrainian war and the so-called misguided sanctions against Russia. Liquefied gas is flowing into the EU in greater measures than ever before. Before the war, there was an average consumption of 40% between the Member States; now it has gone down to a meager 7%.

Seeing all this data compiled, Hungarians are paying five times more for the portion of gas beyond the reduced amount than the market price in the EU. The Europe-wide average market price is EUR 30 per megawatt-hour, which is a considerable drop seeing the before-war levels of gas prices. This low market price has granted the government a considerable room for price reductions.

Current situation

The Hungarian gas price has been fixed by the government since 1 August 2022. This means that, because the market dropped down to a sheer EUR 30 from the dizzying 300-340 range, the government now has plenty of room to adjust tariffs.

According to RTL, the government’s budget had an energy protection fund that had HUF 520 billion (EUR 1.34 billion) by the end of the year. This was considerable due to the plummeting gas prices. This amount is roughly the estimate of the 13th month pension payout this year that the Finance Minister of Hungary has estimated.

In response to inquiries, the government had nothing more to add to the issue, other than their official response which sounds like this: “Thanks to the utility bill reductions, the Hungarian households have the most affordable access to electricity and gas in Europe”.

Hungarian FM: Bulgaria repealing law hostile to Hungary’s energy security

Bulgaria is repealing a law on hiking the transit fee for Russian gas which has put a question mark over Hungary’s energy security, Péter Szijjártó, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, said on Tuesday, adding that “previous cooperation based on mutual respect” may resume once the law has been fully annulled.

The Bulgarian law imperiled the gas supply of North Macedonia, Serbia and Hungary, and Russia’s Gazprom, the supplier, contested its legality, Szijjártó said in a ministry statement.

He noted that the law had been enacted without prior warning, and was as such “hostile”.

After unsuccessfully appealing to Sofia to repeal the law, “we made clear that if it remained in force, Hungary would veto Bulgaria’s Schengen entry,” the minister noted.

The Bulgarian government then indicated that parliament was prepared to withdraw the legislation.

Szijjártó said that his counterpart Marija Gabriel told him yesterday that parliament would repeal the law that imposed an extra tax on transporting of natural gas to Hungary.

“This good news,” he said, adding that it would be possible to return to the situation a few months ago in terms of the security of Hungary’s gas supply.

“In the past, Bulgaria had been a reliable transit partner, and we sincerely hope that by revoking this hostile law we can return to cooperation based on mutual respect that always characterised our relations in the past,” he said.

Szijjártó said he would instruct Hungary’s permanent representative in Brussels to withdraw Hungary’s veto of Bulgaria’s accession to Schengen as soon as Bulgaria’s intent was made official.

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Hungary, Serbia, North Macedonia join against Bulgaria

szijjártó in serbia

Hungary, Serbia and North Macedonia are taking joint action against Bulgaria in connection with the hike in its fee to forward natural gas, Péter Szijjártó, the foreign affairs and trade minister said in Belgrade on Friday.

At a joint press conference with Serbian energy minister Dubravka Đedović, Szijjártó said Serbia helped to undergird Hungary’s energy security, while some EU countries did the opposite.

He said no one had the right to threaten the security of another country’s energy supply. Bulgaria’s “hostile” measure was, he said, “unacceptable”.

“We’re ready to give a sufficiently weighty response to this hostile Bulgarian step within the framework of the European Union,” he said, noting their request for an infringement procedure.

He said North Macedonia was also “on board”, referring to “tight” cooperation and coordination with the country.

Bulgaria’s move, he said, put European solidarity in doubt. “Allies don’t do this to each other.”

Also, Bulgaria was going against EU rules by levying what amounted to a customs duty, he said, adding that it hindered the free movement of goods and undermined common EU trade rules.

“We expect Bulgaria to withdraw this hostile decision,” he said. Also, the EU should enforce its own rules should Bulgaria refuse, he added.

Szijjártó called Serbia a “reliable ally” in helping Hungary to ensure the security of its energy supply.

Fully 4.7 billion cubic meters of gas was piped to Hungary via Serbia this year, he said, while Serbia currently stored more than 200 million cubic meters of gas in Hungary.

The minister said that work was progressing well on preparations for a new oil pipeline connecting the two countries, while electricity transmission capacity would be doubled by 2028.

“This is hugely important for us as we’ll need a large amount of new electricity to supply investments related to the electric car industry,” Szijjártó said.

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Hungary and Romania sign key energy deals

péter szijjártó in romania

Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó on Wednesday said he has signed important agreements with Romanian Energy Minister Sebastian Burduja that will allow Hungary to continue to rely on Romania’s cooperation in guaranteeing the country’s energy security.

Szijjártó said on Facebook that he and Burduja had agreed to increase the capacity of the interconnectors between their countries’ gas networks so that Hungary could access as much of the gas extracted from the Black Sea gas fields as possible.

Hungary and Romania will also begin preparations to link their electricity grids, Szijjártó said.

Meanwhile, the minister said Burduja had assured him that Hungary could continue to transport Russian nuclear fuel for its Paks plant through Romania.

Orbán government pays millions of euros more to Russia for gas than it would have on stock exchange

Putin Orbán Russian gas disgraceful role

Gas prices on the Dutch stock exchange have been falling for the ninth month in a row. However, Hungarian citizens are not affected by this positive change. How come? Hungarian residential gas tariffs have remained unchanged for a year. This is because Hungary pays for gas under a 15-year contract from October 2021: a contract signed by the Orbán government with Russia.

Russian gas more expensive than gas on Dutch stock exchange

Referring to the August data of the Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH), Népszava wrote that August seems to have brought some calm to the gas markets. At that time, Russia could charge Hungary around HUF 122 (EUR 0.32) per cubic metre of fuel. That meant a 3% increase compared to July. However, the benchmark average price on the Dutch stock exchange TTF, two months earlier, comes out at HUF 114 (EUR 0.30).

In August, the Russians could charge Hungary EUR 33.4 for every megawatt hour of gas. By contrast, the benchmark average price on the Dutch stock exchange in June was EUR 32.6.

Hungary paid EUR hundreds of millions more

In the meantime, MVM, Hungary’s leading power wholesaler, has started filling gas storage facilities. Thus, in one month, we received 687 million cubic metres of gas from Moscow, double the level of the same month last year. By August this year, we had received 3.6 billion cubic metres of Russian gas for a total of HUF 869 billion (EUR 2.3 billion). It is true that this is 16% less than in the first eight months of last year.

According to the calculation of Népszava, if Hungary had bought the fuel this year on the stock exchange instead of on the basis of the contract concluded by the Orbán government with the Russians (which will be in force for 15 years from October 2021), we would have paid HUF 337 billion (EUR 888 million) less by August 2023.

Russian gas supplies through Ukraine to be cut off

Ukraine’s Naftohaz will not extend its contract for the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine to the European Union, said the company’s CEO Oleksiy Chernyshov, in his interview with the Deutsche Welle Business News. The contract will expire at the end of 2024. The head of the company said that, until now, transport has only been reserved for countries that do not have a coastline.

Supporting Russia through the purchase of Russian gas during wartime is absurd. Natural gas and oil exports are among the main weapons in Russia’s war against Ukraine. Russia uses energy as a weapon. We believe that cheap gas comes with a high price,

the CEO said.

The decision will put the Hungarian, Slovakian, Czech and Austrian markets in a difficult situation, as currently around 42 million cubic metres of natural gas per day arrive via the routes through Ukraine, Index writes.

Read more about Hungary-Russia relations below:

Hungary and Serbia protest Bulgaria’s tax on transit gas from Russia

The governments of Hungary and Serbia said a decision by Bulgaria to levy a tax on the transit of their gas from Russia was “an adversarial step” that put “the safe supply of energy at risk” for both countries, in a joint statement issued on Tuesday.

“This decision goes against European solidarity, endangering the energy security of a fellow EU member state and a candidate country,” the sides said in their statement.

“Hungary and Serbia will coordinate their positions and will not leave this hostile Bulgarian decision without a proper response,” they added.

Szijjártó: Gazprom will continue fulfilling gas supplies obligations

Russian President Vladimir Putin and the director of Gazprom have confirmed that the company will continue fulfilling its contracted gas supplies obligations in the direction of Hungary despite increased transit fees by Bulgaria, the foreign minister said on Tuesday.

The ministry cited Péter Szijjártó as saying in Beijing following Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s meeting with Putin that the situation in Ukraine was an important topic on the agenda of talks. Hungary faces the negative consequences of the war on a daily basis, in the form of the migrant crisis, high inflation and soaring energy prices caused by the policy of sanctions, while ethnic Hungarians are among those that die in the fights, he added.

“The prime minister talked about the possibility of peace at today’s talks, as well, and stood up for peace,” Szijjártó said. “The answer we received and the message of the entire meeting, all that was said there, offer no reason for too much positive hope,” he added.

The other focal point of the talks was energy cooperation between the two countries because Hungary must maintain relations based on common sense and mutual respect in order to guarantee the security of supplies, he said.

“Whether we like it or not, Hungary’s energy security cannot be guaranteed without Hungarian-Russian cooperation,” he said. “The question of energy supplies is not a political or an ideological question,” the foreign minister added.

“Concerning energy cooperation, a review of the situation established that the country’s energy supplies are secure and Hungarian-Russian cooperation serves this,” he said.

Commenting on Bulgaria’s increasing the transit fees on Russian gas in a measure introduced without preliminary warning, he said the decision was unfriendly towards Hungary and Serbia because it threatened the security of energy supplies. The measures go against European solidarity and may violate community rules on the introduction of duties and the free movement of goods, he added.

Szijjártó said that he had held several talks with Serbian deputy Prime Minister Sinisa Mali about the issue and agreed to coordinate steps in the future.

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Agreement is close, the Hungarian government will soon own Budapest Airport

budapest airport

Commenting on soaring fuel prices, Gulyás said the government was looking to find alternative sources, adding that it viewed the five-fold increase of transit fees as “incorrect business conduct”.

EU funding and price of gas

Answering a question, Gulyás said the government would not change the price of household gas until December 31. He added that if prices would be adjusted to fluctuating world market prices, the price of electricity would have to be radically increased both below and above the utility price cap limits and the price of gas below that limit.

Answering another question, he said the government would assess at the end of September whether a pension adjustment should be carried out.

Asked about the payment of EU funding Hungary is entitled to, Gulyás said that the government hoped that the European Commission would “return” to acting in line with the law and that there would be no obstacles that hinder the unlocking of funds. He argued that Hungary had met all criteria set by Brussels and the EC had until November to take a decision. As regards access to funds available under the current seven-year budgetary framework, Gulyás said Hungary aimed to get the full amount and the government was conducting talks in Brussels accordingly.

Commenting on recent talks by Klára Dobrev, an MEP of opposition DK, with an American “pro-war” politician supporting weapon deliveries to Ukraine, Gulyás said the Hungarian left wing would deliver weapons to Ukraine, if they were in power. He called the left wing’s pro-war stance “an irresponsible” policy towards the around 100,000 ethnic Hungarians living in Ukraine’s Transcarpathia region.

Commenting on Wednesday’s address of the EP president, Gulyás said that the government was not surprised that Brussels had not changed its position on the war in Ukraine, on migration and the LGBTQ issues. “We would welcome if Brussels addressed Europe’s real problems,” he said. Europe has a vested interest in achieving peace, Gulyás said, adding that the government would not support migration quotas and migrant redistribution schemes.

He said it was difficult to figure out from Ursula von der Leyen’s Wednesday speech whether Hungary would receive any contribution to the costs of the fence it had erected on its border, but he expressed hope that a part of it would be reimbursed.

Commenting on reports that Ukraine was ready to amend its minority laws, he said the foreign ministry was also ready for this. When President Katalin Novak held talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, one of the five points they agreed on was that the issues concerning ethnic minorities’ language use must be addressed. An acceptable solution would be for Ukraine to reach an agreement with Hungary and amend the situation. Once an agreement is reached, the Ukrainian parliament approves it and the law enters force, then the reason for Hungary blocking Ukraine’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations will cease to exist, he said. “We would like this to happen”

Budapest Airport

Commenting on negotiations about Budapest airport, the head of the Prime Minister’s Office said that they would not reveal details before an agreement is reached. The “good news” would be announced in every detail once the agreement is signed, Gulyás said.

He said it was unreasonable to compare the amount allocated for purchasing the airport with the amount needed to raise teachers’ wages. The raise of teachers’ salaries is being postponed not by the government but by left-wing MEPs lobbying in Brussels against teachers getting 800,000 forints a month while they pocket 6 million forints, he added.

The purchase of the airport could increase state debt but not the budget deficit, he said.

Gulyás said it was in Europe’s interest that economic ties are maintained with all large economic powers and accordingly, Hungary wants to maintain cooperation with China. Prime Minister Viktor Orban is expected to visit China in October, he added.

In response to a question about Hungary not handing over to Ukraine refugees who had been drafted in the army, he said no such request had been received from Ukraine and in line with the Geneva Convention, refugees must not be handed over anyway.

In response to a comment regarding an increasing number of refugees crossing the border to Slovakia illegally, he said all Hungary could do was to protect the southern borders. By doing so, Hungary also protects Slovakia from tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of refugees, he added.

Hungary to start receiving gas from north

Natural Gas Refinery Gas Supply

Hungary has reached a political agreement on potential gas deliveries from a new LNG terminal under construction in Gdansk, in northern Poland, Péter Szijjártó, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, said in Karpacz on Wednesday.

The entry of Hungarian oil and gas company MOL onto the Polish market and Polish peer Orlen’s presence in Hungary provides a good basis for energy cooperation between the two countries, Szijjártó said after talks with Anna Moskwa, Poland’s energy affairs minister.

Hungary and Poland intend to expand their cooperation from fuel trade to gas purchases, he said, adding that the construction of a new liquefied natural gas terminal in Gdansk that will be used to export an annual 4-4.5 billion cubic metres of gas provided a new resource for diversification.

Szijjártó and Moskwa:

This gives Hungary an opportunity to have a new gas delivery route, Szijjártó said, noting the existing interconnectors between Poland and Slovakia and between Slovakia and Hungary. This means that there is a possibility to deliver significant volumes of gas annually along this route, he added.

Hungarian state-owned energy company MVM had signalled its intent to contract capacity from the terminal, Szijjártó said, adding that the binding phase for booking capacity had started in September.

The minister said he and Moskwa had agreed that Poland would provide all the necessary political support to expanding bilateral energy cooperation to gas deliveries.

He added, at the same time, that there was a lot more to discuss in the coming weeks concerning the terms of delivery and the technical details.

“This adds to the country’s energy security, which is particularly important amid the current times of energy crisis in Europe,” Szijjártó said.

He noted that Hungary has also signed gas purchase agreements with Azerbaijan, Turkiye and Qatar, but it was clear that the energy infrastructure in south-eastern Europe did not have the capacity to handle these delivery volumes. “We hope this will change in the future,” he added.

Though the European Union is not willing to provide necessary financing, Hungary is working closely with the south-eastern European countries on expanding the capacities, the minister said.

Featured image: illustration

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FM Szijjártó: Unfair to accuse Hungary of being pro-Russian

péter szijjártó in karpacz poland

It is unfair to accuse Hungary of being pro-Russian, the foreign minister said on Wednesday, adding that no one could lecture Hungary on history and freedom because Hungarians knew full well what it was like to live under oppression “unlike those who haven’t experienced this”.

Addressing a panel discussion on the future of the Visegrád cooperation at the Economic Forum in Karpacz, in Poland, Szijjártó expressed criticism of those who he said accused Hungary of being “pro-Russia” and “Putin-friendly”, saying: “I don’t have to explain it here in Poland to the Polish that perception does not always equal reality.”

Hungary had to fight for its freedom and received no help in 1956 despite Radio Free Europe announcing at the time that the country would get support from the United States.

The ones trying to lecture Hungary on history, freedom, the Soviet Union and communist oppression today are those who never experienced it, the minister said.

He said it was unfair to accuse Hungary of being “pro-Russian”, arguing that it was the physical reality and the existing infrastructure that determined Hungary’s energy supply, and the European Union was not doing anything the develop alternative delivery routes.

“Okay, I’ll cut the gas contract with Russia, fine, we don’t buy the gas from Russia. And then what happens tomorrow?” Szijjártó said. “Who will explain it to the Hungarian people?” “The same with the nuclear … fine, we’ll cut the contract with Russia, no problem. Who is the one to stand here and say that I’ll replace these 2,400MW for you, same price, same schedule?” he said.

Hungary’s government is working to diversify its natural gas resources, but the capacity of the energy infrastructure in southeast Europe is very limited and the EU does not want to finance its development, Szijjártó said.

Similarly, 85% of Hungary’s oil consumption is covered from Russian sources, but the Croatian authorities have increased the transit fee five-fold via the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, the only alternative route, and no one in Europe is protesting this, he added.

Meanwhile, Szijjártó said the United States had purchased twice as much uranium from Russia in the first half of this year as during the whole of last year.

On the subject of the Visegrád Four cooperation, Szijjártó said the grouping was still a strategic focus of Hungarian foreign policy, as the central European countries had a better chance of overcoming difficult circumstances if they were united.

The Visegrád cooperation has made achievements in recent years that have served the interests of not just Czechia, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia, but the whole of Europe, he said.

Szijjártó argued that if the four countries had not presented a united front against Europe’s planned mandatory migrant quotas, the continent would be full of illegal migrants waiting to be distributed.

He also noted that the Czech, Polish and Hungarian militaries were cooperating in policing Slovakia’s airspace and that the other three countries had assisted Hungary with its border protection efforts when migration pressure peaked.

The V4 have also contributed significantly to getting enlargement on the EU’s agenda, he said, arguing that they were united in their support for the EU integration of the Western Balkan countries, unlike several western European leaders, who he said only supported it in public.

Given that the V4 comprises four sovereign countries, they will never be in 100% agreement on the various issues, and it is natural to have “ups and downs” in relations due to disagreements, Szijjártó said, adding, however, that the countries had always been capable of separating these disagreements from other aspects of their cooperation on which they were united.

Concerning the V4’s economic weight, he said the combined GDP of the four countries would put them in 14th place in the global ranking, adding that trade between Germany and the V4 was double the trade volume between Germany and France.

Szijjártó welcomed that the current Czech V4 presidency sought to focus on practical accomplishments, pointing out that central Europe would be willing to purchase natural gas from Qatar, Azerbaijan, Türkiye, though the southeast European energy infrastructure did not have the capacity for this and needed to be developed.

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EU has no right to tell Hungary where to buy gas, says Szijjártó

By refusing to help finance regional energy infrastructure capacity expansions, the European Union “has lost all rights to have a say in where Hungary buys its natural gas”, the minister of foreign affairs and trade said after meeting his Azeri counterpart in Budapest on Monday.

The success of a project to increase Azeri gas shipments to 1 billion cubic metres a year hinges on EU financing, because south-eastern European energy infrastructure currently lacks capacity to satisfy demand for energy diversification in the region, Péter Szijjártó told a joint press conference held with counterpart Ceyhun Bayramov, noting that Azerbaijan has begun LNG deliveries to Hungary under a deal to purchase 100 million cubic meters of gas and to store a further 50 million cubic meters.

Energy diversification is key to Hungary’s energy security, and Azerbaijan “is a viable alternative” for Europe as well as Hungary, he said.

Meanwhile, Szijjártó said Azeri-Hungarian relations were also key to economic growth. In the first half of 2023, trade was double the amount of that of the entire year of 2022, he said. The jump was driven by exports of pharmaceuticals and energy imports, he said.

Szijjártó also welcomed the presence of Hungarian companies in the reconstruction of Nagorno-Karabakh after the war there, a business opportunity coming to tens of millions of dollars, he said. Two Hungarian pharmaceutical companies and Hell Energy are also planning investments in Azerbaijan, he added.

“When we started building relations with Azerbaijan in 2010-2011, we were looked down upon in Europe … so it’s fun to watch western European leaders now fighting for a photo-op with President Aliyev in Baku,” he said. “We are not friends only because it turned out that you have natural gas,” he told Bayramov.

Responding to a question, Szijjártó slammed EC President Ursula von der Leyen as “very bad for Europe”. Under her tenure, the EU had lost its position as the second largest economy to China, and it continues to sever Eastern-Western cooperation ties. Also, the EC “severely discriminates against Hungary and Poland”, he said.

Regarding Ukraine’s EU membership, Szijjártó said Hungary would not support it while Ukraine “tramples on minority rights”. Protecting such rights is a fundamental value of the EU, he said. Kyiv “seems to be reluctant to do so, despite statements to the contrary,” he said.

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Hungarian FM discusses energy cooperation with Bulgarian president

Szijjártó Bulgaria

Hungary will increasingly rely on Bulgaria’s gas transit capacities, the minister of foreign affairs and trade said after talks with Rumen Radev, Bulgaria’s president, late on Wednesday.

“Since we are planning to buy an increasing amount of gas from Azerbaijan and Turkiye, we will need Bulgaria’s transit capacities more and more,” Péter Szijjártó said on Facebook.

The minister said the Bulgarian president had assured him of his country’s readiness to cooperate.

Szijjártó and Radev agreed that the possible interruption of deliveries through Ukraine would increase the importance of the Bulgaria-Serbia-Hungary transit route.

Hungarian FM highlighted the Bulgarian president’s merits in the advancement of bilateral ties, and his crucial role in making Bulgaria a “reliable partner with regard to gas transit deliveries.”

Hungary-Slovenia gas interconnector to be constructed

Representatives of Hungary and Slovenia have finalised a cooperation agreement under which “construction of a natural gas interconnector has been granted the green light”, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said on Facebook on Tuesday.

Slovenia has so far been Hungary’s only neighbour without a link between the two countries’ gas networks, Szijjártó noted.

The new interconnector will have a capacity of 440 million cubic metres, allowing for supplies via the Italy-Slovenia-Hungary gas corridor, the minister said, adding that the new facility would mark “another crucial step towards Hungary’s energy security”.

The finalised agreement will be signed in Budapest in early October.

Hungary and Slovenia have also strengthened their cooperation in the area of nuclear energy, and voiced support for that “sustainable, cheap, and safe way for producing electricity”, Szijjártó said, adding that Slovenia, similarly to Hungary, would expand the lifespan of its nuclear plant and increase its capacity.

He said the parties at his talks in Slovenia had seen eye to eye concerning major issues around creating a regional electricity exchange, adding that a Hungarian-Serbian-Slovenian initiative could be launched early next year.

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Hungarian company acquires a massive German project

Solar power plant in Felsőzsolca

The Hungarian-owned MET Group has acquired a 100 percent stake in a project launched by Emeren Germany. The solar power project has a peak capacity of 11.5 megawatts, generating 13 gigawatt-hours of energy per year.

Hungarian company buys German project

The Kentzlin photovoltaic solar power plant project developed by Emeren Germany has been acquired by the Hungarian-owned MET Group. This special solar power plant will have an installed capacity of 11.5 megawatt peak (MWp) and an annual energy production of 13 gigawatt hours (GWh), which corresponds to the average annual consumption of 3,600 households in Germany.

The project, located in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, reached construction completion in mid-July. Commercial production is scheduled to start in the second half of 2024.

According to the announcement, the entry into the renewables market has further expanded the scope of the energy company’s activities in Germany. MET Group was already an active player in the German gas and electricity markets. In recent years, it has acquired 3.4 terawatt hours (TWh) of natural gas storage, concluded LNG regasification capacity, established a local subsidiary and is increasingly supplying energy to municipal utilities, industrial and commercial customers and now also to residential customers.

Christian Hürlimann, MET Group CEO for Renewable Energies, said the Kentzlin project fits well into MET’s strategic plans.

MET Group

The Swiss-based MET Group is a European integrated energy company active in the natural gas and electricity markets, as well as in the development and operation of energy assets. Through its subsidiaries, it is present in 14 countries, active in the gas markets of 30 countries and 22 international trading points, including Hungary.

MET Hungary Lys started operations in 2007. It initially focused on the wholesale and retail natural gas sector. In 2013, the group also entered the energy and oil segments, for example, a year later it acquired Dunamenti Power Plant in Hungary, telex.hu reports.

State support for high revenues

MET has made a fortune on natural gas in Hungary since 2011. The Hungarian government and the state-owned MVM have provided ample amount of help.

The Switzerland-based MET Holding, which is partly owned by the state of Singapore, is a Hungarian company. The chairman of the board until last December was Csaba Lantos, who has since become Hungary’s energy minister.

 

Hungary gas reserves at 4.5 bn cubic metres

Central heating pump Hungary gas

The amount of gas reserves in domestic storage facilities stands at 4.5 billion cubic metres, level with 44 percent of annual consumption, the energy ministry said on Wednesday.

The ratio is well over the 24 percent EU average and is the fourth highest in the bloc, the ministry said on Facebook.

The amount of state-protected strategic reserves stands at 1.9 billion cubic metres, the ministry said.

Hungarian households used 3.4 billion cubic metres of gas during the whole year of 2022, it said.

Government: Hungarian families have the cheapest gas in Europe

Natural gas burner

In preparation for the next heating season, domestic gas storage facilities have been filled continuously since April; the amount of gas reserves has now reached 3.9 billion cubic metres, or the level of the full-year retail consumption in 2021, the last year before the energy crisis, the energy ministry told MTI on Friday.

Compared with last year’s figures, the picture is even more favourable as households used 3.4 billion cubic metres of gas in 2022, the ministry said.

Hungarian families continue to have the cheapest access to natural gas in Europe thanks to price subsidies guaranteed in the 2024 central budget, the ministry said. Citing the energy crisis caused by the war and the sanctions imposed in response, the government has raised the amount of the protected state gas reserves by 50 percent to 1.9 billion cubic metres in order to guarantee secure energy supply, they added.

Including economic players, gas consumption fell by 17 percent in 2022, partly due to milder weather and partly to savings.