Druzhba Oil Pipeline to Resume Operations by End of April, Zelenskiy Says

Ukraine expects the Druzhba oil pipeline to resume operations by the end of April following recent disruptions, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said. The outage has affected regional crude flows and contributed to tensions between Ukraine and Hungary over EU financial support.

(Reuters) — The Druzhba oil pipeline is expected to resume operations by the end of April following recent disruptions, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said April 14.

The outage has halted crude flows through one of Europe’s key pipeline corridors, contributing to tensions between Ukraine and Hungary. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has tied the restoration of pipeline flows to Budapest’s support for a proposed €90-billion European Union financial package for Ukraine.

Zelenskiy said Kyiv aims to rebuild relations with Hungary’s new government on a pragmatic basis as efforts continue to restore operations.

The Druzhba system is a major route for Russian crude deliveries to Central and Eastern Europe, making its restart critical for regional supply stability.