United Hungarian refiner Mol said it could replace up to 80 per cent of Russian oil supplies with fuel from other sources, Bloomberg reported.
Mol owns refineries not only in Hungary but also in Slovakia, the two states that remain the last buyers of Russian oil in the European Union.
In its quarterly report, the company specified that alternative supplies could be organised through the Croatian pipeline in the Adriatic Sea. It is capable of meeting up to 80% of the needs of Hungarian and Slovakian refineries, which are landlocked.
At the same time, the company recognised that this would entail higher technical risks and logistics costs.
Mol’s statement, released hours before Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban met with U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington, could be a turning point, Bloomberg notes. Earlier, both Hungarian authorities and the company itself insisted that the country has no alternative to Russian supplies.
US President Donald Trump is hosting Viktor Orban at the White House on 7 November.
During the meeting, the Hungarian prime minister was expected to seek his country’s exemption from US sanctions if Budapest continues to purchase Russian oil.
The US president said at the start of his meeting with Orban that he was considering exempting Hungary from sanctions because of its purchase of Russian oil. “We are considering it because it is very difficult for him to get oil and gas from other regions,” Trump told reporters. Earlier, the US president said the United States would not make an exemption for Russian oil at Hungary’s request.
Trump has insisted that European countries stop buying Russian oil to stop Moscow’s revenues being used for its war against Ukraine.
Hungary maintains its dependence on Russian energy, which has drawn criticism from several European Union and NATO allies.
In October, Russia’s largest oil companies Rosneft and Lukoil and their subsidiaries came under U.S. restrictions.
Mol’s position shows Budapest’s readiness to demonstrate flexibility before the White House talks, where one of the key topics will be the issue of Hungary’s energy independence, Bloomberg notes.