Hungary has received temporary approval from the European Commission to delay full implementation of EU gas-capacity rules at its border with Serbia until the 2027/2028 gas year.
The derogation concerns rules requiring cross-border pipeline capacity to be sold as a single bundled product on both sides of an interconnection.
Serbia, which is outside the EU, has not yet completed the regulatory and technical arrangements needed to implement the system.
The issue is commercially important because the Serbian corridor has become a major supply route for Hungary. Much of Hungary’s TurkStream gas enters through Serbia at Kiskundorozsma, where annual import capacity is around 8.5 billion cubic metres.
Hungarian regulator MEKH requested the exemption in February. The European Commission concluded that the temporary arrangement would not materially disrupt the EU gas market or threaten security of supply.
The decision gives operators and regulators additional time to align Serbia-Hungary capacity procedures while preserving flows along an increasingly important regional gas corridor.
