Hungary has signed a year agreement with Russia’s Gazprom for 4.2 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas from the period of October 2020 to October 2021, according to Neftegaz.

Despite having just penned this one-year deal, Hungarian Foreign Minister, Péter Szijjártó, has planned next Autumn to sign three five-year deals with an option to cancel at the end of each five-year period. 

Speaking about the future long-term contracts, Szijjártó said: “This would secure long-term supplies for us and it would also enable us to renegotiate or possibly quit the agreement in case better opportunities arise and the international energy market changes.”

Hungary will buy an additional 2 bcm of gas to fill storage facilities this summer, with the transports already in action.

In 2019, Gazprom exported an estimated 9.3 bcm of gas to Hungary which represents a 22% increase compared with the total gas supplies to Hungary recorded in 2018. In 2018, Gazprom supplied to Hungary 7.6 bcm.