Slovakia and Hungary on Friday rejected a proposal by the European Commission that they could replace lost Russian oil supplies with an alternative route through Croatia. Budapest said that the country is unreliable for oil transit, which caused outrage in Zagreb, UNN reports, citing Euractiv.
Context
According to the publication, supplies of Russia's largest oil exporter Lukoil through Ukraine were suspended in July after the Ukrainian authorities banned Lukoil from using the Druzhba pipeline, which connects Russia with Eastern Europe.
Earlier this month, Hungary and Slovakia asked the European Commission to intervene and mediate as it threatened their security of supply.
However, they reject the European Commission's proposal to use the free capacity of the JANAF Adriatic pipeline in Croatia to supply both countries with oil that does not come from Russia.
Another statement by Budapest
"Croatia is simply not a reliable country for transit," said Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto. - "Oil transit prices have been raised five times since the beginning of the war by Croatia."
Транзит нафти "лукойлу" через Україну: Сійярто різко відповів Брюсселю02.08.24, 11:59
Zagreb's response
"This is a politically deeply offensive statement that we did not expect from a representative of a country whose malicious actions we have long responded to with extreme restraint and moderation," said Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic Radman.
Croatia's JANAF also rejected the allegations in a statement, saying it was continuously investing in its transportation and storage system.
The company said it has tested its transportation capacity on the section towards Hungary with MOL and proved that it can transport 1.2 million tons of crude oil per month.
What Bratislava says
Slovakia, whose Hungarian refinery Slovnaft already receives some oil through JANAF, also known as Adria, said on Friday that it had received a letter from the Croatian government offering to secure supplies.
"But at what price? What capacities? No one knows today," Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar said in a statement.
Slovakia wants "the European Commission to force Ukraine to fully resume supplies from Russia," but said it would also look for another solution if the European Commission does not take action.
Addendum
Flows from Russian suppliers other than Lukoil through Druzhba are said to continue.
Despite lengthy negotiations over transit fees, Croatia's JANAF and Hungary's MOL reportedly managed to sign a one-year contract in May 2023 to transport and store 2.9 million tons of crude oil through the Adriatic Pipeline to MOL's Hungarian and Slovak refineries.