Pressemitteilungen

JANAF currently charges more than three times the transit fee charged by the operator of the TAL pipeline, which departs from the neighbouring port of Trieste and runs through Germany to Vienna.

The Croatian prices are more than one and a half times higher as those applied on the Ukrainian section, while Ukraine is at war, which poses extraordinary challenges for the Ukrainian energy infrastructure and these circumstances are not present in JANAF’s case.

It is important to note that the so-called land transport through Ukraine delivers crude oil to the region directly from the producing companies, with no additional transport costs. In contrast, goods arriving at the port of Omisalj are transported from the producing countries (Libya, Saudi Arabia, Kazakhstan, Norway, etc.) by sea in Croatia, which means an additional transport cost of USD 20-25 per ton.

This additional cost makes the already unjustified transport costs on the Croatian route even more expensive.

It is also a fact that in 2022, after the outbreak of the war, the Croatian company increased its transport fees by more than 70%, while we did not experience a similar increase among service providers.

Transport fees can be compared on a per 100 km basis. Charges per tonne are as follows:

We would also like to emphasize that there is currently no signed contract between MOL and Janaf, meaning that current deliveries are taking place in a legally unregulated environment. MOL continues to seek an agreement, but JANAF is clearly abusing its position by not offering crude oil transportation in line with industry pricing and not taking into account the additional costs of maritime transportation. At the same time, the new contract would place the settlement of disputes under Croatian law and the courts of Zagreb, instead of Austrian law and the Vienna Arbitration Court, which has been the practice in the past years. MOL cannot accept this.

JANAF has long been aware that crude oil deliveries to Hungary and Slovakia via the Druzhba pipeline have been interrupted. MOL has already sent the relevant official documents on this matter to the Croatian company. EU regulations are clear: if oil delivery from Russia to a landlocked member state via pipeline is interrupted for reasons beyond that member state’s control, then seaborne crude oil from Russia may be imported into that member state. This position has also been confirmed by the Hungarian government’s sanctions authority in its statement.

The regulation does not contain any preconditions that would require MOL or any other affected operator to seek prior approval or confirmation for this.

MOL’s planned procurement of Russian crude oil transported by sea also fully complies with US sanctions regimes. OFAC’s sanctions regime is publicly available, as is the list of companies permitted to transport goods. The companies contracted by MOL to transport and supply Russian crude oil are not on any U.S. restricted lists, including OFAC’s.

According to the relevant EU and US sanctions, JANAF has no other option but to allow through Russian crude oil shipments arriving by sea. Accordingly, MOL urgently requests JANAF to confirm that it will accept the seaborne crude oil shipments of Russian origin legally imported under EU and US sanctions rules.

MOL underlines that JANAF currently holds a dominant position on the crude oil transportation routes to MOL’s refineries. Refusal to provide the necessary transportation services may therefore constitute an abuse of dominant position under EU competition law. Should JANAF continue to refuse to provide confirmation, MOL will have no other option but to turn to the relevant EU authorities, including the Directorate-General for Competition of the European Commission.

MOL also notes that JANAF will bear legal and financial responsibility for any financial damage resulting from the delayed arrival of the confirmation. MOL reserves the right to assert its claim for damages against JANAF.

Budapest, February 25, 2026 – MOL Group and Janaf have finally agreed to start long-term capacity tests on the Adria pipeline with the involvement of an international, independent monitoring team. During the stress tests, experts will observe what peak and long-term continuous transport performance the infrastructure is capable of under different weather conditions and in different seasons. MOL welcomes the start of the tests, as this could end the war of numbers and put an end to the long-standing debate about the actual capacity of the pipeline. Instead of opinions, a professional test based on data and facts will tell how much the Adria pipeline can handle. In statements in Croatia, the annual capacity of the pipeline has ranged between 11 and 15 million tonnes, while no more than 2 million tonnes of crude oil have ever been transported through the pipeline section.

MOL is also waiting for the Croatian company’s position on whether it will allow through Russian crude oil shipments from the sea. JANAF still has not responded directly to MOL's request last week, but asked for time to interpret the EU sanctions regulation that has been in force for several years and was also voted for by Croatia. At the same time, the Croatian company asked MOL for EU and US permits in connection with the shipments. In MOL's view, this is completely unrealistic, as it is not possible to request separate EU and US permits for each shipment, and this unjustified bureaucratic obstacle would make continuous transportation impossible. If a crude transport company and its cargo are not included on the publicly available EU and US sanctions lists, the Croatian company must allow it in. According to the relevant EU and US sanctions, it must allow unsanctioned Russian crude oil shipments to pass to ensure the region's security of supply if the Druzhba pipeline is not in operation. International law also applies to Croatia in this case.

MOL also maintains its position that Janaf charges several times the average European price per 100 km for deliveries, which could exhaust the suspicion of abuse of a monopoly position.

Finally, MOL once again states that two full-fledged, commercially competitive routes are needed for the region’s security of supply. The Adria pipeline needs to grow up to the task, but in the spirit of source diversification, it is also necessary to ensure that the Druzhba pipeline is operational. That is why we support Ukraine's efforts to connect the Druzhba pipeline to the Black Sea by restarting the Odessa-Brody pipeline, thereby increasing the level of crude supply security of the region.

Chairman and CEO Zsolt Hernádi commented the results: 

“The strong financial results of 2025 confirm that MOL Group can deliver value even under increasingly difficult conditions. In a year marked by supply disruptions, geopolitical uncertainty and operational challenges, MOL ensured continuous operation and energy security across the region. I am very pleased to see the further improvement of our internal efficiency, especially in the Circular Economy business.

In the last quarter of 2025, we also reached several important milestones: we decided to transition to a holding structure, further strengthened our renewable portfolio in Hungary, and our hydrocarbon production neared 100 mboepd, reflecting the resilience of our integrated business model.

At the same time, the fire at the Danube Refinery and the serial outages of the Druzhba pipeline once again highlighted the challenges of energy supply in landlocked countries. Recent events highlighted again that our energy sovereignty depends on the diversity of our crude resources, at least two commercially viable transportation routes and on the cooperation with Governments who understand the interest of the region. We are even more determined to stand up for the interests of the region and we will do everything to keep all our options open to maximize our freedom of choice. And this is for maintaining the region's security of supply ecosystem.”

Downstream performance benefited from a strong refining environment resulting in better-than-expected results. Favorable external conditions supported refining margins, which more than offset the impact of lower processed volumes and the weaker year-on-year performance of petrochemicals.

Upstream results were negatively impacted by a lower price environment, as the decline in oil and gas prices more than offset the positive quarter-on-quarter volume trend. Higher production levels were supported by increased output in Central and Eastern Europe and in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. Total hydrocarbon production surpassed 99.4 mboepd in Q4 2025. For the full year, production averaged 94.7 mboepd, surpassing the annual guidance of 92-94 mboepd. Looking into 2026, production is seen set to increase further, to 95-97 mboepd.

Consumer Services keeps its upward trend and the results were driven by one-off factors and growth on both the fuel and non-fuel sides of the business. Fuel margins strengthened overall, supported by strong performance in Croatia and Romania, while non-fuel margins made a positive contribution to Q4 2025 results. Results were further supported by a favorable foreign exchange effect following the appreciation of the Hungarian forint. Growth in both sales and margins was supported by the continued rollout of the Fresh Corner brand, with the number of units reaching 1,409 by the end of Q4 2025, up 2.7% quarter on quarter and 6% year on year. Non-fuel margin represented 35.6% of total margin in Q4 2025.

Circular Economy Services delivered a positive contribution to Q4 2025 results, driven by seasonality, favorable external effects and internal efficiency efforts. The Deposit Refund Scheme set-up was largely completed during the year, with redemption available at nearly 5,300 locations, and two bulk-feed machines put into operation in 2025. In its first full year of operation, the beverage packaging return ratio reached 88.8%, with around 3 billion containers collected.

Gas Midstream performance remained flat year on year, as higher transmission demand was offset by lower regulated tariffs. External conditions were slightly less favorable than a year ago, while transmitted volumes remained strong throughout the period.