EC: Oil supplies to Hungary and Slovakia are not in immediate danger

Oil supplies to Hungary and Slovakia are apparently not in immediate danger, as Ukraine’s sanctions on Russian oil company Lukoil do not affect the transit of oil through Ukraine to Hungary. The European Commission (EC) said this in a letter addressed to the foreign ministers of Hungary and Slovakia, Reuters reported.

In the letter, EC Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis writes that, according to information from Hungarian energy company MOL, which imports Russian oil, ownership of the oil is transferred to trading companies at the Russian-Ukrainian border, meaning it is not subject to sanctions.

According to the letter, the Commission reached the preliminary conclusion that „urgent consultations do not appear to be justified, as there are currently no signs of an immediate threat to security of supply“. The Commission also said that a number of EU member states are asking why Hungary and Slovakia have not yet reduced their dependence on oil supplies from Russia.

Slovakia and Hungary have criticised Kyiv’s decision to place Lukoil on Ukraine’s sanctions list. They say the move is preventing them from buying oil for their refineries and threatening fuel supplies, Reuters reported.