Business 10 February 2026, 4:00pm

This time, interested parties can apply for licences to explore, develop and produce natural gas and crude oil at potential sites in

Baracska, Bácsalmás, Békéscsaba, Kisköre, Nagylengyel-Nyugat, Tiszacsege and Tiszalök.

According to the announcement, the aim of the concession procedures is to exploit the potential of domestic mineral resources in a cost-effective manner and reduce import dependency. As in previous rounds, the opportunity to explore and extract gas and oil can be obtained for 20 years.

Provided the obligations are met, the original term may be extended by up to 50% without the need for a new application. Calls for applications in the seven areas will be available on the government website from Tuesday.

After a five-year hiatus, the Ministry of Energy announced new mining concessions in 2024. The announcement noted that, based on the contracts concluded last year, the winners had begun exploring for hydrocarbons at six sites in the Buzsák, Csongrád, Hatvan, Kiskőrös, Kiskunhalas and Tamási regions. Building on these positive experiences, the ministry plans to create opportunities for extraction at additional sites, thereby increasing the country's self-sufficiency.

Prior to 2019, more than 30 areas were awarded hydrocarbon and geothermal energy contracts following seven similar procedures. The Ministry indicated that concession fees and mining royalties had generated tens of billions of forints for the budget.

This tender opportunity will boost domestic production by encouraging industry investment. Last year, approximately 1.17 million tonnes of crude oil were extracted from domestic fields, making it the strongest year of the century so far. Last year's domestic natural gas production of almost 2 billion cubic metres was the highest since 2013, according to the Energy Ministry's statement.

Cover image (for illustration purposes only): Getty Images