Gazprom seen closer to become direct gas supplier to Hungary

http://www.portfolio.hu/en/cikkek.td...

There are new developments in the RosUkrEnergo-Emfesz story, which imply that Russian gas monopoly Gazprom has taken yet another step forward to become a direct supplier of the Hungarian natural gas market.

At its Board meeting scheduled for 20 March RosUkrEnergo (RUE), a Swiss-based firm in which Russian Gazprom holds a 50% stake, “will tackle the sale of a part of the company and the buyer would be Gazprom Export," Hungarian business daily Világgazdaság reported on Tuesday.

The deal is likely to have an impact on Emfesz, the largest Hungarian customer of RUE, as Emfesz is in talks with Gazprom Export to buy gas directly from it and not from RUE as an middleman.

Emfesz has a gas transmission contract with RUE in effect until 2015, but under a new gas pact sealed by Ukraine and Russia in January, Ukraine will no longer be part of gas deliveries and gas transit through the country may also be off.

According to current plans, Gazprom Export would deliver gas to Emfesz directly. There are no specific details available about the deal reportedly in the making, but if the same terms were applied as in the Emfesz-RUE contract, Hungary's largest natural gas trader on the free market would still be able to offer gas 8% cheaper to households than public utility companies.