UPDATE 1-Hungary to seek more Russian gas amid energy crunch, Orban says

Hungary will seek to increase the amount of gas it receives from Russia at talks with President Vladimir Putin next week, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Friday. Hungary, a member of the European Union and NATO, agreed a new long-term gas supply agreement with Russia's Gazprom in August.

Hungary will seek to increase the amount of gas it receives from Russia at talks with President Vladimir Putin next week, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Friday.

Hungary, a member of the European Union and NATO, agreed on a new long-term gas supply agreement with Russia's Gazprom in August. Moscow and the West are locked in a tense standoff over Ukraine amid a build-up of Russian forces along the country's eastern border as NATO reinforces its presence in eastern Europe.

Orban, who faces what is expected to be a close-fought election on April 3, has dismissed calls from a unified opposition to cancel his visit to Moscow, scheduled for Tuesday. "I would like to increase the amount of gas to be delivered ...from the levels agreed in the Russian-Hungarian gas contract," Orban told public radio.

"I would like to achieve at our talks that in the current difficult situation burdened with higher energy prices ... the amount of gas available to us over the long run should be increased." The 15-year agreement, which delivers 4.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year to Hungary on routes avoiding neighboring Ukraine, took effect in October with an option to modify purchased quantities after 10 years.

Hungary's gas reserves were 43% filled based on Jan. 15 Energy and Public Utility Regulatory Authority (MEKH) data. It said that, combined with expected further imports, would cover 90% of Hungary's expected remaining winter gas needs. Orban said he would also discuss European security with Putin, adding that Hungary was interested in a peaceful resolution to the Ukraine standoff.

"Of course Hungary is a member of NATO and the EU, so before each such meeting I consult and co-ordinate with our western allies," Orban said, adding that he would hold further talks with western leaders in coming days. The Defence Ministry did not respond to Reuter's questions earlier this week about whether Hungary would host more NATO forces in the coming weeks.

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