Hungary To Sign New Long-Term Gas Supply Deal With Russia

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto and Russian gas giant Gazprom chief Aleksei Miller are expected to sign a new long-term gas supply deal for Hungary on September 27 in Budapest.

Budapest said last month that it had agreed with Moscow on all the conditions for a new long-term gas supply deal to take effect from October 1.

Szijjarto said at the end of August that the duration for the agreement with Gazprom would be for 15 years, with a clause to change purchased quantities after 10 years, adding that the price had also been agreed.

Gazprom would ship 4.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas to Hungary annually, Szijjarto said. Two routes will be used -- 3.5 billion cubic meters will come via Serbia and 1 billion cubic meters via Austria.

Hungary has relied on Russia for most of its gas imports delivered via a pipeline through Ukraine, but in recent years it has diversified imports, opening cross-border interconnectors with most of its neighbors and securing supplies from Royal Dutch Shell via a liquefied-natural-gas terminal in Croatia.