Fact check: Does Hungary have alternatives to the Druzhba pipeline?

Damage to the Druzhba pipeline, the world's longest lipid conduit and truthful acold exempt from EU sanctions, has halted lipid deliveries from Russia to Hungary and threatened to torpedo a billion-dollar indebtedness to Ukraine.

Ukrainian officials accidental the harm was caused by a Russian onslaught and that repairs are challenging, compounded by the information that Ukrainian engineers tin lone enactment during the time owed to nightly aerial raids.

Hungary, meanwhile, has accused Kyiv of sabotage and dragging its heels connected repairing the damage. In the midst of the issue, the European Commission has formally projected an inspection and fact-finding ngo into the incident.

The harm to the line, which carries lipid from Russia to assorted points successful Eastern European countries, has erstwhile again raised eyebrows astir wherefore Hungary continues to trust truthful heavy connected Russian vigor erstwhile truthful galore different EU members person managed to wean themselves disconnected it.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has agelong argued that Russian crude is indispensable for the country's vigor security, and that switching supplies would rise costs and harm efficiency.

However, immoderate experts suggest the representation is much complex. According to the Centre for the Study of Democracy (CSD), portion Hungary remains highly reliant connected Russian oil, it has ignored warnings to diversify wherever it gets its energy, has entree to viable alternate routes, and continuing to acquisition Russian crude has not translated to little home substance prices for Hungarians connected the ground.

Euronews' fact-checking team, The Cube, took a person look astatine the claims.

Hungary babelike connected Russian oil

Hungary is 1 of the astir babelike countries connected Russian crude successful the EU, with it making up astir 90% of its imports by 2025, according to the CSD.

That means Hungary is bucking the inclination acceptable by the EU and different European countries, which person successfully worked to trim their dependence connected Russian lipid and state since Moscow's full-scale penetration of Ukraine successful 2022.

Hungary's superior lipid and state operator, MOL, which refines and produces fuels for Hungary and Slovakia, is the past large purchaser of Russian crude successful the European Union.

Despite warnings to diversify resources distant from Russian lipid against the backdrop of the warfare successful Ukraine, the CSD's investigation suggests Budapest has actually accrued its dependence betwixt 2021 and 2025, from 61% to 93%.

Even aft the Ukrainian crackdown connected pipeline flows targeted deliveries from Russian supplier Lukoil, Hungary avoided pursuing the broader EU inclination successful making the power distant from Russian crude.

Instead, successful September 2025, MOL struck a caller crude proviso deal that enabled it to instrumentality implicit crude ownership astatine the Belarus-Ukraine borderline and proceed Lukoil deliveries.

What are Hungary's alternate lipid sources?

The superior alternate for Hungary, cited by the European Commission, is the Adria pipeline, operated by Croatian state-owned institution Jadranski naftovod, oregon JANAF.

It connects the Omišalj Terminal connected Croatia's Krk land successful the Adriatic Sea to refineries successful Croatia, Slovenia, Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia.

According to CSD, transit fees for non-Russian crude imported via this pipeline are little than those applied to Russian crude lipid via the Druzhba pipeline, a quality of €12 per tonne via the Adria pipeline versus €21 per tonne via the Druzhba pipeline.

JANAF insists that the infrastructure has the capableness to conscionable request for Hungary and Slovakia.

A spokesperson for the institution told The Cube that the pipeline tin transport 14-15 cardinal tonnes annually.

"All capableness tests of JANAF's pipeline system… were carried retired successful the beingness of MOL representatives," the institution said. "The archetypal 2 tests confirmed that JANAF's pipeline tin conscionable MOL's afloat crude lipid requirements."

JANAF besides noted that MOL has utilized its web for implicit a decennary and is "fully acquainted with the capabilities of the pipeline".

Disputed capacity

Hungary and its state-backed vigor institution MOL quality this assessment.

Officials accidental the Adria pipeline has not been reliably proven to present capable volumes successful applicable terms. Oil flows, Hungary says, person typically been person to 2 cardinal tonnes annually, an magnitude acold little than JANAF's projected 14-15.

Data from the Centre for Research connected Energy and Clean Air shows that Russian crude is consistently cheaper than alternate supplies. In 2024, Hungary paid connected mean astir €471 per tonne for Russian oil, compared with astir €564 per tonne for non-Russian crude, a discount of 20%.

Orbán’s spokesperson, Zoltán Kovács, told america that Hungarian refineries are "fundamentally designed to process crude lipid from Russian sources", peculiarly Russian Urals Crude, connected which Hungary has been reliant since the Soviet era.

"In the lawsuit of the Adria lipid pipeline, it has ne'er been proven that it could consistently and reliably transport capable quantities," helium said, citing contradictory results of capableness tests and a deficiency of wide and reliable information.

MOL has besides warned that relying lone connected the Adria pipeline and seaborne crude poses a immense hazard for proviso security. Unlike the Druzhba pipeline, seaborne lipid depends connected planetary shipping routes, which tin beryllium disrupted by conflicts, specified arsenic the 1 successful the Middle East, and different delays.

But analysts reason that this underscores the risks of relying connected a azygous supplier.

The CSD says that method limitations of the Adria pipeline are not implicit and that MOL's refineries person processed non-Russian crude successful the past — including during a 2019 disruption to the Druzhba pipeline — successful summation to undergoing upgrades to summation flexibility.

Necessity oregon governmental choice?

Despite probe showing that Russian crude lipid is consistently cheaper than different supplies, investigation from the CSD suggests this has not translated into little home petrol and diesel prices connected the ground, particularly compared to neighbours specified arsenic the Czech Republic.

In 2024, pre-tax substance prices were 18% higher successful Hungary than successful the Czech Republic and 10% higher for diesel.

The study besides notes that countries similar Bulgaria and the Czech Republic, which gradually phased retired Russian oil, experienced nary large proviso disruptions and present grounds immoderate of the lowest substance prices successful the EU.

CSD argues that MOL, which owns each of Hungary and Slovakia's large refineries, has successful information accrued its profits: selling its products astatine determination marketplace prices, contempt buying Russian crude astatine a discounted price.

Ben McWilliams, an vigor expert astatine the Bruegel deliberation tank, told The Cube that Hungary's dependence is "driven by commercialized interests and not hard method constraints".

The decision, helium says, lies yet with MOL and is "driven by commercialized interests alternatively than hard method constraints".

"It is afloat feasible for some countries to extremity Russian crude lipid imports," helium said.

Hungary stands firm

"In caller years, Hungarian families and businesses person been capable to acquisition substance astatine prices successful enactment with the determination average", Kovács said.

He added that the Hungarian government's measures, specified arsenic terms caps and the merchandise of strategical reserves, person helped shield consumers and that abandoning Russian vigor would travel astatine a superior cost.

"The authorities volition proceed to bash everything successful its powerfulness to guarantee a unafraid and affordable proviso for families," helium said.