Hungary and Slovakia speculate on fuel supplies for Ukraine, but losing Kyiv as a buyer is a major blow

Hungary and Slovakia’s recent comments on a disruption to the Druzhba pipeline are largely speculative, according to fuel market expert Serhii Kuiun.

Speaking at Media Center Ukraine, Kuiun said the countries’ concerns over reduced oil and fuel sales to Ukraine are misplaced.

“Hungary and Slovakia are assuming that a hit on Druzhba will force us to buy less oil and, in turn, fuel from them. But it’s not Ukraine that will suffer, it’s [them]. We have the capacity not just to replace 10% of the fuel previously supplied by Slovakia, but our entire 40% consumption. Within a week, we had already redirected our supplies,” he explained.

Kuiun added that losing Ukraine as a buyer could come at a high cost for these countries. “Will they be able to find a buyer like us? Obviously, the kremlin provides corrupt discounts, meaning they will end up paying more for raw materials and lose us as a market. They are not doing us a favor, we pay market prices for their fuel,” he said.

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