Serbia and Hungary will have enough gas in winter thanks to friendly relations with Russia and their independent policy, Serbian Interior Minister Aleksandar Vulin said on Friday
BELGRADE (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th October, 2021) Serbia and Hungary will have enough gas in winter thanks to friendly relations with Russia and their independent policy, Serbian Interior Minister Aleksandar Vulin said on Friday.
Gas transit to Serbia via the TurkStream pipeline through the Bulgarian gas transportation system kicked off at the beginning of this year, and was launched through the territory of Serbia to Hungary on October 1. Earlier on Friday, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said that he hoped to meet with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on November 25 to discuss, among other things, energy prices.
"As we have built a gas pipeline and have not abandoned our power plants, we will have electricity and gas this year. As we have not abandoned our friendship with Russia, we will have the most favorable gas price. This is because Vucic and (Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor) Orban are pursuing an independent policy also on border protection and our way of life," Vulin was quoted as saying by his ministry.
In late September, Hungary and Russian energy giant Gazprom struck a deal involving supplies of 4.5 billion cubic meters of gas annually for the next 15 years. The contract prompted an outcry among Western nations, while Kiev claimed that it undermined Ukraine's status as a transit country. In response, Budapest said that Hungary is a sovereign country and decides on its own where to buy gas and how to have it delivered.
On July 8, the 402-kilometer Serbian section of the TurkStream pipeline was linked to Hungary's gas transport system at the border of the two countries.
Russia is now the only natural gas supplier to Serbia. In previous years, Serbia received over 2 billion cubic meters of Russian gas by a pipeline through Ukraine and Hungary. However, since the beginning of 2021, Russian gas has flowed to Serbia through Bulgaria by the TurkStream pipeline. According to Sputnik sources from the Gastrans operator company, at the initial stage it was planned to transport about 4 billion cubic meters per year, which was supposed to fully cover Serbia's needs.
In the meantime, Europe continues to suffer from a surge in fossil fuel prices, especially natural gas, spurred by increasing energy demand amid the global economic recovery after months of COVID-19 lockdowns, as well as limited supply.
