Hungary is launching a major overhaul of its energy sector to sharply lower
electricity costs, currently among the highest in Europe, state secretary at the
energy ministry András Tóth said Thursday. The government aims for energy
independence and to sharply reduce natural gas and crude oil imports by
extending the life of existing nuclear units, lifting a ban on wind investment,
and increasing solar use through storage; targets include adding 4 GW of wind
capacity by 2032 and at least 3 GW of storage by 2028. According to government
estimates, these measures could reduce wholesale electricity prices to about
€50/MWh by 2040, versus an estimated €128/MWh under the current system — a drop
of more than 60%.
