Here is the announcement: Azerbaijani gas may also appear in Hungary from the end of next year
After Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said at a press conference before Christmas that he had requested an additional 1 billion cubic meters of gas from Russian President Vladimir Putin, now Sijjártó, in order to gain good relations with the country in order to obtain Azerbaijani gas resources message on this topic.
There was no talk about the numbers yet, but Szijjártó pointed out that based on MTI’s coverage and Facebook post, The strengthening economic relations between the two countries provide a good basis for Hungary to obtain gas from Azerbaijan, a source independent of Russia. At present, the entire Hungarian gas consumption comes essentially entirely from Russian sources, regardless of the direction from which it arrives in the country, so we also buy essentially Russian gas molecules from the LNG terminal in Krk.
As we pointed out in our analysis yesterday, together with the purchase of an additional 1 billion cubic meters of Russian gas and the purchase of 1 billion cubic meters of Krk, as well as the Hungarian extraction
about 80% of the annual Hungarian gas consumption would be provided by fixed contracts and this would be further increased by the possibility of procuring in Azerbaijan.
As we pointed out yesterday, according to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s threatening statement on Tuesday: European countries without long-term gas purchase contracts could face supply problems due to the fact that their filling level is now too low by the end of spring and it is expected that it will be difficult to refill the tanks during the year, so they may have problems in the second half of the next heating season. Qatari plus LNG shipments, and Americans now on peak, can of course ease this tension, but they also have physical capacity constraints.
Negotiations have already begun so that Szijjártó can also buy from the Azerbaijani gas fields. In your Facebook post, that today they sat at the negotiating table of the Joint Economic Committee for three purposes:
- “Despite last year’s difficult year, our trade with Azerbaijan has grown by almost 30%. Now this momentum must be maintained and intensified so that even more Hungarian companies can profit in the South Caucasus ”. The Ministry’s announcement reminds that “Mol and Richter’s significant investments in the South Caucasus” and “a Hungarian-Azerbaijani business forum will be held during the day, attended by representatives of twenty-four Hungarian companies.”
- “Good political cooperation creates economic opportunities: our goal is for as many Hungarian companies as possible to take part in the reconstruction in Nagorno-Karabakh. Eximbank has now opened a $ 120 million credit line for Hungarian companies to undertake to rebuild urban infrastructure, build energy supplies or start farming in Azerbaijan. ”
- “We are constantly striving to strengthen security of energy supply: the more we get natural gas from more sources, the better for us. Negotiations between the companies have begun for some time to make Azerbaijani natural gas appear on the Hungarian market. ”
Cover image source: Péter Szijjártó’s Facebook page