Energy sector in Hungary - statistics & facts

Hungary’s primary energy production has followed a decreasing trend over the past decade, totaling approximately 449 petajoules in 2022. During the same year, Hungary sourced most of its electricity from nuclear power plants, accounting for 45 percent of the total electricity generation. Fossil fuels, such as natural gas and coal, were the second most-used source of power in the country.

Reliance on nuclear energy

Hungary’s four operating nuclear power reactors were constructed in the 1980s at the Paks Nuclear Power Plant. Ever since, Hungary has focused on maintaining its nuclear generation capacity. In 2014, Hungary closed a deal with Russia to construct two new reactor units at the Paks Nuclear Power Plant that would be expected to start operating by 2030. In the summer of 2022, the Hungarian Atomic Energy Authority granted a construction permit for Paks II, the new building project carried out by Rosatom. However, the planned construction of two additional units with a capacity of 1,200 MW each may face significant delays due to the Russia-Ukraine war.

Steps towards energy security

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine drew attention to the importance of energy independence and created new energy security challenges in Europe. In 2022, Hungary’s energy import dependency stood at 64 percent, marking an increase of over 10 percentage points compared to the previous year. Due to low domestic production, natural gas as well as oil and petroleum products accounted for the largest share of energy imports. The country has a long history of Russian fossil fuel dependence, starting in the 1960s with the opening of the Druzhba I oil pipeline. As for natural gas, Hungary has relied on long-term contracts with the Russian company Gazprom since the 1990s. However, in response to the current global energy crisis, Hungary is taking steps toward energy security by increasing domestic gas production. In February 2023, natural gas production started in the Nyékpuszta natural gas field, located in the South of Hungary.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Statista Research Department, Mar 12, 2024

Key insights

Primary energy production in Hungary
449PJ
Final energy consumption in Hungary
828PJ
Energy dependency rate in Hungary
64.2%
Get more insights

Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Distribution of electricity generation in Hungary in 2022, by source

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Power production breakdown in Hungary 2022, by source

Primary energy production in Hungary from 2010 to 2022 (in petajoules)

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Primary energy production in Hungary 2010-2022

Average monthly electricity wholesale price in Hungary from January 2019 to March 2024 (in euros per megawatt-hour)

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Monthly wholesale electricity prices in Hungary 2019-2024

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