Hungary Condemns Croatia Over Oil Transit Reliability

Hungary's foreign minister accused Croatia of being an unreliable partner for oil transit after the European Commission recommended importing oil via Croatia. This followed a halt in Russian oil supplies due to sanctions. Despite a contract with Croatia's Janaf, Hungary cites issues with transit fees and capacity reliability.

Hungary's foreign minister has pronounced Croatia an unreliable transit partner for oil, following a European Commission recommendation for the landlocked nation to import oil through its southern neighbor.

Earlier this month, Hungary and Slovakia sought the European Commission's intervention after Russia's largest oil exporter, Lukoil, halted supplies due to Ukrainian sanctions that blocked the Druzhba pipeline. The Commission found sufficient capacity in Croatia's JANAF Adriatic pipeline for non-Russian oil supply to both countries.

Hungary's Peter Szijjarto criticized Croatia for increasing oil transit prices fivefold since the Ukraine war's outbreak and lamented Croatia's lack of investment in capacity building. Despite difficulties over transit fees, Hungary's MOL and Janaf signed a one-year agreement in May 2023 for crude transport and storage. Croatia's government has yet to comment on these accusations. The European Union banned oil imports from Russia to reduce dependency on Russian fossil fuels, allowing exemptions for Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic to secure alternative supplies.

(With inputs from agencies.)