Overview
- Ukraine resumed pumping through the Druzhba pipeline on Wednesday around 11:30 CET, and officials in Budapest and Bratislava said first deliveries should arrive by Thursday morning.
- EU ambassadors gave preliminary backing to the €90 billion support package and a 20th Russia sanctions round, and the Cypriot presidency launched a 24-hour written procedure to finalize both measures once oil lands.
- Hungary and Slovakia had tied their consent to the restart of flows, and Hungary’s MOL and Slovakia’s economy minister said requests were filed and that initial volumes would be split between the two countries.
- The southern branch of Druzhba supplies most of Hungary’s and nearly all of Slovakia’s crude, and both states hold exemptions from the EU’s Russian oil ban, so the restart helps keep refineries running and fuel prices steadier for households and drivers.
- Ukraine warned the line remains at risk from Russian strikes, and Reuters reported Russia plans to halt Kazakh oil shipments to Germany via Druzhba from May 1, a move that could tighten supplies for the Schwedt refinery.