European countries have significantly reduced the purchase of Russian gas, but they are unable to ensure their energy security without resources from the Russian Federation, Hungarian Energy Minister Csaba Lantos said in an interview with Mandiner.
“Today, one eighth of the 160 billion cubic meters of gas that used to come from there every year comes from Russia,” he said.
According to him, it is impossible to compensate for such a volume overnight, writes March 19 Prime. Europe manages to reduce gas consumption, but there are still risks to energy security. For example, the European authorities failed to create hubs for receiving liquefied natural gas (LNG). Russian gas is supplied by pipeline, so there is simply no need for such an infrastructure.
However, Hungary is in a more privileged position than other European countries, Lantos added. Budapest has concluded long-term contracts with Gazprom, and the Russian company always fulfills its obligations, the minister summed up.
Earlier, the German authorities admitted that the time of cheap energy over. The Germans may face gas shortages as early as next winter.
