Hungary’s new agreement with Gazprom: a dangerous political decision

European Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson claimed at the press conference of the Energy Council that the European Union is preparing for the termination of Russian gas transit through Ukraine by the end of 2024 and that extra agreements with Gazprom are politically dangerous.

Simson underlined that the EU’s gas storage facilities are at 95% capacity, and injections into storage are continuing; also, the European Union has diversified its gas suppliers and boosted its use of renewable energy sources.

At the end of the year, the gas transit agreement between Gazprom and Naftogaz expires. “Today, I reaffirmed to the ministers that we are ready for it,” remarked the European Commissioner.

She noted that Central and Southeast Europe already have alternative supply lines in place to entirely replace the 14 billion cubic meters of Russian gas now transiting via Ukraine.

“If Member States prefer to continue importing Russian gas, and they do it even beyond contracted capacity, or if they wish to sign new agreements for new capacities, I want to be clear: this is not a necessity. It is a political choice and a dangerous one.” Simpson said.

“We must remember that the costs of dealing with Russia are not just measured in the price of gas but also in the lives lost in Ukraine,” she added.

While other EU nations are diversifying their energy supply sources to avoid partnering with the aggressor, Hungary is looking for ways to preserve such collaboration.

Earlier, we reported that Hungary and Russian Gazprom have agreed on a possible increase in Russian gas supplies.