Druzhba pipeline restart may impact diesel prices, Ukraine's Energy Minister says
Photo: Ukraine’s Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal (Getty Images)
Ukraine hopes that after the resumption of oil transit via the Druzhba pipeline, imports of petroleum products from Hungary — particularly diesel — could also resume. This could lead to lower prices, Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal said to journalists after a meeting of the Ukraine Energy Coordination Group in Kyiv.
"I believe that the pipeline between Hungary and Ukraine should be used, especially given the current challenges in the fuel market. This will help us receive additional volumes and possibly reduce diesel prices thanks to pipeline transport," Shmyhal said.
He noted that the government is not conducting negotiations on fuel imports — this is a matter for companies.
At the same time, the minister stressed that the issue of further fuel imports "will be worked out" with Ukrtransnafta and the Hungarian company MOL.
It is worth noting that Ukraine mainly purchases diesel fuel from Hungary. Supplies have been carried out primarily by rail and through a petroleum products pipeline.
Hungary and Slovakia have exemptions from the ban on importing pipeline oil from Russia. However, petroleum products made from this oil can be used only for domestic needs and exported exclusively to Ukraine.
Druzhba pipeline dispute
As a reminder, in January, a Russian drone damaged a section of the pipeline in western Ukraine, which led to a suspension of oil supplies to Hungary and Slovakia.
Budapest and Bratislava accused Kyiv of delaying repairs, but the Ukrainian side denied these claims.
Former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban ordered a halt to natural gas transit to Ukraine starting from July 2026.
On April 21, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the section of the pipeline damaged by Russian shelling had been repaired and was ready for operation.
Later, Ukrtransnafta confirmed the completion of repair works on the Ukrainian section of Druzhba and the cancellation of force majeure.
The company announced readiness to resume crude oil transit to Hungary and Slovakia.
On April 22, it was reported that Ukraine had resumed pumping oil through the Druzhba pipeline.
And on April 23, Hungary and Slovakia received the first shipments of Russian crude oil via Druzhba.
