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SZIJJÁRTÓ: HUNGARY, SLOVAKIA PREPARE JOINTLY FOR POSSIBLE FALLOUT OF UKRAINE GAS ROUTE

 

Hungary and Slovakia are preparing together for possible disruptions in gas supply via Ukraine as Ukraine and Russia have still not concluded a transit agreement for after January 1, 2020, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said after talks with Slovak Energy Minister Peter Žiga. After the meeting held on the sidelines of the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, Szijjártó said Hungary and Slovakia had to be prepared for the case of no gas arriving via Ukraine. One solution would be creating a southern supply line through the extension of the Turkish Stream pipeline through Bulgaria and Serbia to Hungary. Due to the Hungarian-Slovak interconnector, Slovakia would then also have access to gas, he said.
Hungarian and Slovak gas providers, transporters and traders will set up a working group in September to prepare for such scenarios, he said. Szijjártó also noted that Hungary had already agreed with Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller to buy a part of the 2020 gas supply already in 2019, and store it in Hungarian facilities.