Poland's PKN has no fuel supply issues, ready to boost sales to Ukraine

Poland's biggest refiner PKN Orlen

has no issues with fuel supplies to its retail outlets in Slovakia and Hungary,

the company's Chief Executive Officer, Ireneusz Fafara, said on Thursday.

He added that Orlen will also try to boost fuel supplies to Ukraine, after Hungary and Slovakia said they would cut deliveries.

Gergely Gulyás, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's chief of staff, told journalists today that the government is considering halting electricity and natural gas deliveries to Ukraine.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó announced earlier this week that diesel fuel deliveries to Ukraine have been suspended until Ukraine resumes oil shipments through the Druzhba pipeline to Hungary. The oil flow has been disrupted since 27 January following a Russian attack on infrastructure in Brody, Lviv region, though Szijjártó blames Ukraine for the stoppage, claiming it's political interference in Hungarian elections. In response, Mol has requested the release of 250,000 tonnes from strategic oil reserves, with the first replacement shipments via sea route expected in early March through Croatia's Omišalj port.

Slovakia, also affected by the pipeline disruption, has released 250,000 tonnes from its emergency reserves for Slovnaft and announced it will cease fuel exports to Ukraine. Both Hungarian and Slovak officials, along with Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, hold Ukraine responsible for the situation, despite the initial damage being caused by Russian strikes.

The shutdown of the Druzhba (Friendship) oil pipeline has put Hungary's Mol in a challenging position. The suspension of the pipeline has halted oil deliveries to Mol's refineries in Százhalombatta, Hungary, and Bratislava, Slovakia.

While Mol is Hungary's largest fuel wholesaler and supplies its own petrol stations, its competitors have been less affected. According to a spokesperson from OMV's Vienna headquarters, OMV Hungary primarily relies on products from the OMV Group's own refineries rather than purchasing from Mol. Shell Hungary has a diversified procurement model with multiple supply sources to ensure continuous and reliable service; however, the company did not disclose its reliance on Mol as a wholesaler. This situation highlights the varying degrees of resilience in the supply chains of Hungary's major fuel retailers.

On Saturday, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, chided Shell and Erste, branding them the “tollkeepers of death, the dogs of war”