Croatia Rejects Hungary's Oil Import Dependency Claims, Citing JANAF Capacity

Croatian Prime Minister Dismisses Hungarian Claims

Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on November 10, 2025, publicly contradicted Hungary's assertions of dependence on Russian crude oil, stating that the Adriatic oil pipeline operator JANAF has more than enough capacity to meet Hungary's energy needs. Plenković described the Hungarian claims as 'completely false' and a 'false narrative'.

According to Plenković, JANAF possesses all the necessary facilities and throughput to deliver the full amount of crude oil required by refineries in Százhalombatta, Hungary, and Bratislava, Slovakia. He emphasized that JANAF's total crude oil transport capacity surpasses the combined maximum processing capacity of these two refineries. Croatian officials have stated that JANAF can guarantee deliveries of 15 million tons of oil annually to both Hungary and Slovakia. Technical tests conducted in February 2023, with representatives from Hungary's MOL present, confirmed the Adria pipeline's capacity at 1.2 million tonnes per month, equating to 14.4 million tonnes annually, which exceeds the combined oil consumption needs of Hungary and Slovakia (estimated between 11.1 and 12.2 million tonnes per year).

Hungary Cites Dependence and Pipeline Issues

Conversely, Hungary, led by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó, has consistently maintained its reliance on Russian oil, citing geographical constraints as a landlocked country and alleged insufficient capacity and high transit fees of the JANAF pipeline. Hungarian oil company MOL has described JANAF as a 'bottleneck currently' and claimed it would not allow its landlocked refineries to operate at 80% capacity. MOL has also raised concerns about the lack of long-term contracts for oil supply via JANAF.

Hungary has accused Croatia of 'war profiteering' and imposing transit fees that are 'five times higher than the average market rates' since the conflict in Ukraine began. Croatia has refuted these allegations, asserting that it charges the same rates to all clients and that oil transport costs constitute only about 2% of the final fuel price.

Broader Context: EU Sanctions and US Exemptions

The dispute unfolds against the backdrop of EU sanctions on Russian oil imports. Hungary and Slovakia were granted an exemption from the EU ban, implemented as part of the sixth sanctions package in June 2022, to allow them time to reduce their dependence on Russian energy. However, Hungary's reliance on Russian crude has reportedly increased from 61% before the invasion of Ukraine to 86% in 2024.

Adding another layer to the situation, the United States imposed new sanctions on major Russian oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil, on October 22, 2025. Following a meeting between Prime Minister Orbán and Donald Trump on November 7, 2025, Hungary secured a one-year exemption from these US sanctions. Prime Minister Plenković expressed surprise that this 'false narrative' from Hungary received 'muted approval' from the United States. While tensions between MOL and JANAF eased slightly in early October 2025 with the initiation of negotiations for non-Russian crude imports, MOL's subsequent proposal to acquire an ownership stake in JANAF was swiftly rejected by Croatia.