Hungary's MOL to bear costs in new Druzhba oil supply deals, sources say
Ukraine's sanctions cut oil flows to MOL via Druzhba pipeline
MOL says it reached new oil supply deals
Releads on changes to tariff payment structure, adds detail throughout
BUDAPEST/MOSCOW, Sept 11 (Reuters) -Hungarian energy group MOL MOLB.BU will bear all costs for transporting oil to its refineries via the Druzhba pipeline from the Belarus-Ukraine border as part of a deal to secure Russian supplies, two industry sources told Reuters.
MOL said on Monday it had reached a deal for the continual supply of Russian oil through Belarus and Ukraine via Druzhba, after Kyiv's addition of Russia's Lukoil to a sanctions list in June led the Hungarian government to voice concerns about security of supply.
It did not give details of the deal. Previously, Russian oil suppliers sold crude oil on a 'free in pipeline' basis in Hungary, under which the seller pays for the delivery of goods.
MOL declined to comment. Russian oil exporter Lukoil LKOH.MM, oil pipeline monopoly Transneft TRNF_p.MM and the Ukrainian energy ministry did not reply to requests for comment.
Kyiv's addition of Lukoil to a sanctions list in June amid the war with Russia stopped the flow of its oil to MOL refineries in Hungary and Slovakia, whose governments said this was a threat to security of supply.
MOL Executive Chairman Zsolt Hernadi said on website index.hu on Wednesday that the deals to transport Russian crude through the Druzhba pipeline complied with all European Union and Ukrainian rules.
He also said MOL's costs would rise under the new deals, but that they were still more favourable than shipping crude via the alternative Adriatic pipeline, where he said Croatia had raised the transit fees.
"Our interest is that both routes (for shipments) should operate so we could keep our freedom to act," Hernadi said.
Slovakia, Hungary and the Czech Republic were granted an exclusion from an EU embargo on Russian oil due to their limited opportunities for alternative oil supplies.
The updated crude oil transportation agreements and the new takeover arrangements are effective from Sept 9.
According to the sources, Russian oil supplies via Druzhba in September are planned at 510,000 metric tons for Slovakia and at 360,000 tons for Hungary.
Reporting by Krisztina Than, Reuters bureau in Moscow and Pavel Polityuk in Kyiv. Editing by Jane Merriman and Jan Harvey
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