The recently disclosed information that MOL and the Ukrainian company Naftogaz had signed a memorandum of understanding caused quite a stir: they intend to examine whether a fuel storage facility for Ukrainian energy supplies could be built on Hungarian territory near the Hungarian-Ukrainian border. Magyar Nemzet has investigated the matter.
The prime minister spearheaded government opposition once the news broke. In parliament, Péter Magyar stated that the negotiations had already begun under the previous government, and criticized MOL for failing to inform the cabinet. On the very same day, Minister for Economy and Energy István Kapitány declared in his speech that “this will not be built under the TISZA government.”
István Kapitány, Minister for Economy and Energy (left), and Zsolt Hernádi, CEO of MOL. Photo: MTI/János Vajda
Based on a telephone conversation with Zsolt Hernádi, MOL’s chairman and CEO, Prime Minister Péter Magyar told parliament that MOL had already begun negotiations on the fuel storage project with the approval of the Orbán government. It was not made clear during which parliamentary term this alleged agreement had taken place—it may even have been before the Russian-Ukrainian war—but the prime minister also published the text of an SMS message that, according to his account, he sent to Hernádi following their telephone conversation, which continued late into the night:
What MOL has done is completely unacceptable, and from now on I expect MOL to treat the Hungarian State as a 25% shareholder.”
At this point, however, it is worth pausing for a moment, because the political debate and the corporate law issue are not the same thing. The state is not a 25% shareholder in MOL, but holds only 15.24%. According to data from the Budapest Stock Exchange updated on September 2, this corresponds to 124.9 million shares. The picture is somewhat more complex, however, as the Hungarian State also holds a single Series B share with preferential voting rights, which grants it special rights as stipulated in the articles of incorporation. This does not mean, however, that the state could veto every single MOL investment project.
As a publicly traded corporation, MOL’s business decisions are made in accordance with corporate governance rules by the authorized bodies; furthermore, the general meeting of shareholders also has certain powers. According to the documents from MOL’s general meeting of shareholders, the special state rights associated with the Series B shares are tied to specific issues. However, a preliminary review of a fuel storage facility in Hungary does not automatically fall under these rights.
Photo: MTI/Purger Tamás
The Hungarian State is a major shareholder, but this stake alone does not make MOL a state-owned enterprise. Its representative may participate in the General Meeting, vote, exercise the special rights granted to it, and even influence corporate governance. However, it is another matter entirely whether the state can dictate to MOL’s management whether it may conduct certain business negotiations.
Furthermore, according to MOL’s articles of incorporation, a single shareholder or group of shareholders may exercise no more than 10% of the voting rights.
Against this backdrop, it is unclear why MOL would have had to consult with the FIDESZ or TISZA government at all regarding the investment proposal.
Should MOL actually decide in a few years to build the fuel storage facility, various regulatory procedures, permits, and reviews may be required, depending on the scope of the investment and the exact technical details. MOL itself points out that the review of regulatory requirements is still pending. Although the state can already act as a regulatory authority at this stage, this does not yet mean that the government’s political position is being enforced. The fact that the government does not support an investment project does not automatically mean that a required regulatory approval can be lawfully denied, but there is an even more important unresolved question.
There is one aspect that cannot be classified as a shareholder right: national security, which was mentioned immediately after the news broke. Hungarian legislation treats certain actors and institutions involved in the strategic stockpiling of crude oil, gasoline, diesel, and kerosene as critical organizations and infrastructure.
Bálint Ruff. Photo: MTI/Szigetváry Zsolt
The review of foreign investments with regard to national security is conducted by the Constitution Protection Office, which informs the minister responsible for overseeing the civilian national security services of the outcome. This minister is currently Bálint Ruff, who may also issue a negative decision if the investment violates Hungary’s security interests.
However, this does not imply a blanket veto on any investment project on grounds of national security.
The law on the review of foreign investments applies to specific legal transactions and foreign investors. Therefore, it is important to clearly understand Naftogaz’s exact role: it matters whether the Ukrainian company is merely involved in the project as a business partner or acquires ownership, operational, or any other rights that fall within the scope of the law. Magyar Nemzet asked MOL about the business structure but received no response yet.
In other words, if MOL, as a Hungarian company, were to build a fuel storage facility as part of its own investment, the state would not automatically have the right to prohibit the investment on grounds of national security. This is because the mere fact that Ukraine is at war with Russia does not automatically make it a prohibited business partner. However, if the project also involves legal transactions that qualify as foreign investment, the security review can already have a de facto blocking effect.
Via Magyar Nemzet, Featured image: Naftohaz Ukrajini/Wikimedia Commons
The post Ukrainian Fuel Storage Facility in Hungary – Who Gets to Decide? appeared first on Hungary Today.
Ukrainian Fuel Storage Facility in Hungary – Who Gets to Decide? 2026
IUSTITIA.BG – Investigations 2009-2026 2026-09-30 14:36:19
Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law Legfrissebb hírek Világhírek Országhírek Legfontosabb hírek legfrissebb hírek legfontosabb a nap legfrissebb hírei Petar Nizamov bíró Tollak Petar Nizamov – Tollak Igazságszolgáltatás bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia nyomozás Burgasz Bulgária hírek az elmúlt óra hírei a nap hírei mai hírek Bulgária hírek Bulgária hírei villámhírek top hírek legfontosabb legtöbbet kommentált legfrissebb hírek Bojko Boriszov hírek időjárás koronavírus hírek hírek időjárás facebook youtube facebook instagram mai hírek az utolsó percek hírei hírek ma ma hírek hírek bg hírek vezető hírek forró hírek bg híroldal hírekhez minden hír hír bg az elmúlt óra hírei legfrissebb hírek bg mai hírek ma hírek ma hírek az elmúlt óra hírei legfrissebb hírek ma hírek bg hírek 24 órás hírek vesti bg novini hírek világ madár bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini legfrissebb hírek ma novinite bg hírek hello bolgár politikai párt címer delyan peevski botrányos Bolgár Nemzeti Televízió Szabad Európa Televízió botrány exkluzív élő tv élő most tv tv online tv műsor bg élőben most tv hírek online tv online élő bíróság Burgasz bíróság Burgasz járási bíróság Burgasz bíróság Burgasz járási bíróság Burgasz járási bíróság Burgasz fellebbviteli bíróság Burgasz ügyész Burgasz ügyészség Burgasz járási ügyészség Burgasz járási ügyészség Burgasz járási ügyészség Burgasz járási ügyészség Burgasz járási ügyészség Burgasz járási ügyészség Burgasz járási ügyészség Burgasz járási ügyészség Főügyész Ivan Geshev ügyész Geshev Tsatsarov Belügyminisztérium Burgasz ODMR Burgasz ODPR Burgasz rendőrség Burgasz járási rendőrség Burgasz ügyész Tsatsarov SGS ügyek Várna bíróság a SGS elnöke bírósági határozatok polgári ügyekben határozatok ügyekben Plovdivi bíróság bírósági határozatok ügyek Várna bíróság büntetőügyek kerületi járási bíróság határozatok munka a bíróságon SGS az SGS elnöke bírák Szófiai bíróság poszt bírák Plovdivi bíróság Plovdivi bírák Plovdiv Legfelsőbb Bíróság Felügyelőség Legfelsőbb Bíróság Legfelsőbb Bírósági Tanács ügyvéd ügyvéd büntetőügyek ügyvéd polgári ügyek ügyvéd házassági ügyek ügyvéd közigazgatási büntetőjog büntetőeljárás polgári jog polgári eljárás közigazgatási jog alkotmányjog
