Hungary, Croatia Planning New Gas Pipeline

By Anonymous

Hungary and Croatia, in a bid to decrease reliance on Russian gas, plan to build a 340-km natural gas pipeline between the Adriatic coast and Hungary, and a liquefied petroleum gas terminal on the Adriatic coast.

It was unclear what role MOL, Hungary’s oil and gas company, would play in the development, though Croatian press reported that MOL and Croatian gas pipeline operator Plinarco agreed to set up a working group to consider a joint project.

Following extreme temperatures in Russia and a surge in demand, Russian gas exports (via Ukraine) to Hungary, recently fell by 20- 25%. About 1.5 billion cubic meters of the gas Croatia uses each year passes through Hungary, and the new pipeline demonstrated “continuing partnership on energy affairs and the connecting of our natural gas networks,” a Hungarian official told reporters, adding, “We would like to build a terminal for liquefied petroleum gas on the (Adriatic) coast, from which we can have pipelines reaching into Europe.”

A feasibility study is to be completed by the end of March. The pipeline would require an 81-km section on the Croatian side, costing Euro 35 million, and a 215-km section in Hungary, costing Euro 100 million.

Copyright Oildom Publishing Company of Texas, Inc. Mar 2006