Hungary’s Russian Pipeline Gas Purchases Down 12% in First Seven Months of Year, TASS Reports

Hungary’s purchases of Russian pipeline gas fell by 12% in the January-July period compared with the same period last year, according to a report published by the Russian state news agency TASS.

The report, citing data on the European Union’s energy trade, said the European Union as a whole imported Russian pipeline gas worth 512 million euros in July.

TASS did not provide additional details on the volume of gas involved or the specific figures underlying the 12% decline for Hungary, nor did it specify the source of the underlying trade data.

Hungary has remained one of the European Union member states most reliant on Russian energy supplies since the start of the war in Ukraine, even as many other EU countries have sought to reduce their dependence on Russian gas and oil.

The European Union has implemented a series of sanctions targeting various sectors of the Russian economy since 2022, though pipeline gas imports from Russia have continued for some member states under existing contractual arrangements.

TASS did not include further comment from Hungarian or European Union officials in its report.