Monitor: Sakova: Russian Gas Imports Accounted for Only 33 Percent This Year

(TA3,'V politike', 14 December) Russian gas imports accounted for only one third of Slovakia's total gas supplies in 2025, Economy Minister Denisa Sakova (Voice-SD) stated on TA3's discussion programme 'V politike' (In Politics) on Sunday in a discussion with opposition Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) MP and deputy chair of the parliamentary finance and budget committee Marian Viskupic. "Under the Russian contract, the quantity from the beginning of January until the end of October averaged only at 33 percent. As much as 67 percent of gas comes from diversified sources, delivered via other routes and from major global players," explained Sakova. Viskupic said diversification is necessary, adding that Slovakia's interests must also be taken into account, "but those interests are not Russian gas and Russian oil which, objectively, aren't cheap and definitely not the cheapest". Sakova said the price of gas under the contract with Gazprom is similar to that of other suppliers. "However, Gazprom bears all the transit costs. If we take gas from a different supplier with a transit route, for example, from Germany, Poland, Italy, or Hungary, then it's us who pays the transit fees," she added. According to Viskupic, it's necessary to have the option of importing gas or oil from as many sources as possible. "We're not at the end of the pipeline, we are in the middle of it. We can import gas from the north, west, east or south, basically from anywhere," he underlined. Sakova also said that Slovakia is considering a lawsuit against the European Commission (EC). "We're challenging the violation of the principle of subsidiarity in the EC's decision," she stressed, adding that the EC is dictating conditions to member states and that they can't decide on their own energy mix. Viskupic criticised the way energy assistance is being provided to households and he also expressed concerns that the Economy Ministry, by collecting information on households and citizens, has turned into an "information ministry", with all the risks that come with it, especially in terms of cyber security. Sakova responded that information is automatically deleted after the necessary calculations are made. The system is installed on the Interior Ministry's cloud which also hosts the Schengen information system and the documents agenda. "This is where the highest security standards are applied and must be complied with, while also being reviewed by the EC every three years," said Sakova. jrg