Energy attorney Máté Tóth has pointed out what he says is a factual error in a post by Minister of Economy and Energy István Kapitány of Hungary concerning gas prices. According to Tóth, Kapitány’s claims overlook the fact that the physical purchase of gas and hedging against price risk are two separate transactions. He also claims that Hungary’s state-owned energy company MVM had already begun hedging transactions for 2027, the Hungarian news site Origo.hu reports.
‘So far, they’ve fixed the price of gas. Nothing for the coldest, most expensive months of winter. We’re working on a price cap that covers the entire gas year,’ Kapitány has posted on social media.
Tóth responded by arguing that gas prices cannot simply be ‘fixed’ in the way Kapitány suggested. While companies can hedge against price fluctuations, the physical purchase of gas and the financial transaction used to hedge the associated price risk are two separate matters. Such hedging can be carried out through buying futures contracts, forwards, swaps, or options.
Tóth went on to say that under the previous government, MVM purchased the quantities stipulated in its long-term contract, paid for them, and has been using them to fill Hungary’s gas storage facilities. Taking advantage of relatively low global gas prices at the beginning of the year, MVM also hedged against price risk through futures contracts covering all of 2026.
In fact, Tóth claimed that MVM had already begun hedging transactions for 2027 as well. He stressed that securing the physical volume of gas and protecting against future price fluctuations are two entirely separate matters.
‘In other words, Kapitány isn’t even telling the truth,’ Tóth wrote.
According to the energy lawyer, however, the current government has managed to mishandle the situation even further. He claimed that in recent months, officials had ‘done nothing but mock and laugh it off’, despite warnings that a gas price crisis could develop across Europe.
‘According to the energy lawyer, however, the current government has managed to mishandle the situation even further’
Tóth argued that the necessary hedging contracts could have been concluded within minutes. Nevertheless, he said, Kapitány and his team did nothing for three and a half months to continue the 2027 hedging transactions that MVM’s previous management had already initiated. At the same time, the previous MVM management had fully secured its hedging for 2026, he emphasized.
Tóth also pointed out that natural gas futures prices have risen significantly in the meantime, with January delivery currently trading at around €62–€63.
‘Kapitány’s response: filthy Fidesz. Let’s not forget another twist where bashing Fidesz doesn’t work. The EU will terminate the long-term contract at the end of 2027—and Tisza is slavishly conforming to this. And one more thing: meanwhile, LNG on the exchange is flowing to Asia instead of Europe,’ the energy lawyer concluded his critical post.
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