The recently modernised Adria crude oil pipeline which connects the Slovak Republic and Hungary is now ready for use. The refurbished pipeline will serve as a main backup route in case of disrupted deliveries of Russian crude oil through the Druzhba pipeline. Slovakia will also be able to use it to import crude oil from ports on the Adriatic Sea. The reconstruction of the 128-kilometer pipeline section cost €70 million, with the Hungarian company MOL, which controls the Slovak refinery Slovnaft, and the Slovak oil carrier Transpetrol being jointly in charge of the project. Following the modernisation, its capacity has been increased to six million tons of crude oil per year, with the previous capacity being 3.5 million tons. The Slovak refinery Slovnaft has thus gained total alternative access to crude oil, while for Transpetrol this opens the opportunity to supply more Russian crude oil to countries in the Balkans. The prime ministers of Slovakia and Hungary attended the official launch of the modernised pipeline, with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico saying, "The Slovak Republic is 99 percent dependent on crude oil imports. We must therefore gradually replace the existing east-west flows by new ones or by reconstructing existing flow links north and south". The original Adria pipeline was built in 1962 with the ability to transport crude oil in both directions.
