Bloomberg: Hungary agreed with Russia to postpone payments for gas by €1.9 billion

Author:
Anna Kholodnova
Date:

Hungary agreed with the Russian company "Gazprom" to postpone payments for gas during the heating season in the amount of about €1.9 billion.

This is reported by Bloomberg with reference to a source familiar with the matter.

On Monday, October 3, Hungary announced that it had received from "Gazprom" a three-year postponement of payments that were to be paid within six months. The terms of this agreement were not officially disclosed.

According to Bloomberg sources, Hungary will pay 20% of the amount in the first year, and 40% in the next two years. The amount to be rolled over assumes an interest rate equivalent to Hungaryʼs three-year international sovereign debt as of mid-September. According to the publication, at that time it was about 3.5%.

So over the winter, Hungary is likely to have to pay around €4 billion or more for Russian gas, excluding the estimated €1.9 billion deferred amount.

Budapest said there is no limit to the amount that can be set aside, and it may increase as the market price of natural gas rises.