Azerbaijan intends to start supplying gas to Hungary at the end of 2023 - Aliyev

BAKU. March 14 (Interfax) - Azerbaijan plans to start exporting gas to Hungary at the end of 2023, Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev said.

"We started supplying gas to Europe a little over two years ago and our volumes are growing every year. If in 2021 the volumes reached 8 billion cubic meters, then this year they will reach 12 billion cubic meters, or almost half of our gas exports," Aliyev said on Tuesday in Berlin at a press conference following talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

According to the memorandum signed with the EU in 2022, by 2027 Azerbaijan should be supplying Europe with 20 billion cubic meters of gas, Aliyev said.

"We want to expand the geography of our gas exports to Europe in the coming years," the president said.

Aliyev added that Azerbaijani gas is currently being exported to Turkey, Georgia, Bulgaria, Greece and Italy. "Deliveries to Romania began in 2023. At the end of 2023, we plan to start the first gas deliveries to Hungary. We have now started negotiations with the Albanian government on gasification in that country and the start of gas deliveries," he said.

The Czech Republic, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and a number of other European countries want to buy Azerbaijani gas, the President said.

Meanwhile, Aliyev noted the importance of building new interconnectors in Europe, which will expand the geography for Azerbaijani gas deliveries.

"Naturally, it is necessary to sign long-term contracts for the purchase of gas. We know that in Europe there is a high degree of desire for a "green" energy transition. Therefore, we are interested in signing long-term contracts, and I hope that we will be able to link these issues," the President of Azerbaijan said.

Gas deliveries from Azerbaijan to Hungary could reach up to 100 million cubic meters by the end of this year, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto noted earlier.