Hungary negotiates over Romanian Black Sea gas

The new Hungarian government is expected to decide on the signing of a gas supply contract with Romania within the next few weeks. The contract provides for annual deliveries of 1 billion cubic meters of natural gas from the Neptun Deep offshore field in the Black Sea, the Hungarian news portal Index and sources familiar with the negotiations reported on 23 May. Production in the Neptun Deep field is set to begin in 2027. Hungary's annual natural gas consumption is around 9 billion cubic meters, of which around 4.5 billion cubic meters currently come from Russia. Romanian gas would replace 20 to 25% of the volumes that Hungary would have to do without if the EU's REPowerEU program bans the import of Russian energy completely from October 2027. According to sources, the agreed price for the Romanian gas is already at a level comparable to the current Russian supply contracts. However, the negotiations have been complicated by political changes in both countries. Under Romanian law, the state has a right of first refusal in strategic transactions. Although the Romanian interim government declared its intention to exercise this right, it did not have the authority to make a final decision. The seven-day deadline for a statement expired on May 15. Romania then requested an extension until mid-June. According to sources, the Hungarian side has already completed its preparations for the conclusion of the contract. The state-owned energy company MVM received all the necessary permits back in March. Prime Minister Péter Magyar stated that the European Union would probably resume purchasing Russian gas after a possible end to the war in Ukraine. Hungary supports the diversification of its energy supply in principle, but must take economic efficiency and energy costs into account. At the same time, he emphasized that liquefied natural gas (LNG), which is transported via the Baltic Sea and through Poland and Slovakia, is significantly more expensive than gas supplies from Russia, Romania or Austria. The post Hungary negotiates over Romanian Black Sea gas appeared first on ostwirtschaft.de.