Serbian pipeline operator Transnafta has submitted an environmental impact assessment for a proposed crude-oil pipeline between the Hungarian border and Novi Sad, moving the project into a critical permitting phase. The next stage follows the submission of the environmental documentation for the alignment and associated works.
Route, connections and crude supply role
The planned route would start near the Horgoš border crossing and continue through Novi Sad and the municipalities of Kanjiža, Senta, Ada, Bečej and Žabalj. It would then connect to Transnafta’s Novi Sad terminal, from which crude could enter the domestic network supplying the Pančevo refinery.
The pipeline is intended to give Serbia a second crude-import corridor through Hungary and the Druzhba system. Serbia currently relies on deliveries through Croatia’s JANAF pipeline, which concentrates import exposure around a single cross-border route.
National importance and regional logistics constraints
The Serbian government designated the Hungary–Serbia pipeline as a project of national importance in December 2023. Since then, the strategic case has strengthened amid sanctions, ownership questions and geopolitical tensions affecting regional oil logistics.
The environmental documentation indicates that most of the alignment will cross agricultural land, forests and water-management zones. It also specifies that trenchless or buried crossings would be required at rivers, roads, railways and existing infrastructure.
Environmental requirements for construction and operation evidence
The assessment must address soil disturbance, groundwater protection, spill containment, construction waste, habitat fragmentation and emergency response. These requirements relate to how construction impacts would be managed along the planned alignment.
Transnafta has selected a consortium led by MVM Južna Bačka to build the Serbian section after a tender launched in December 2025. The combined estimated value of construction and supervision procurement is approximately €131 million, excluding VAT.
Supervision delays and technical verification needs
Progress on construction supervision has been slower than the construction selection process. Serbia’s Commission for the Protection of Rights in Public Procurement annulled part of the supervision tender, delaying appointment of an independent control function.
The documentation describes continuous verification needs during pipeline works, including welding checks, non-destructive testing, coating application, trench preparation, pressure testing, cathodic protection and reinstatement. It also notes that advancing construction without a fully mobilised supervision structure would create quality and evidence risks.
The environmental materials state that defects in buried pipelines become significantly more expensive to correct after backfilling. They add that incomplete inspection records can undermine operating permits, insurance coverage and future integrity management.
Cross-border dependency on Hungarian section and crude availability
The project depends on completion of the Hungarian section and on commercially and legally accessible crude within the connected system. A completed Serbian pipeline provides physical optionality but does not automatically ensure supply volumes, compatible crude quality or exemption from geopolitical restrictions.
The strategic role is described as diversification infrastructure rather than a full replacement for JANAF. Maintaining access to both routes is presented as a way to increase negotiating leverage and reduce consequences from an outage or political disruption affecting either corridor.
The environmental process is running alongside construction preparation, land access and procurement. The €131 million programme is linked to coordinated permitting, cross-border commissioning and independent evidence that the completed pipeline meets required integrity and environmental standards.
