Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has stated his desire to receive electricity from Azerbaijan via Georgia and Romania, News-Georgia reports.

According to him, in this way Hungary will be able to save a lot of natural gas, which is currently used to generate electricity. Orban announced these plans today after talks with Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili.

"I would like to inform the Hungarian public that major energy initiatives are being developed, and this is of interest to us. We want to have new, large power lines and get electricity from Azerbaijan through Georgia, through Romania, and with this initiative we will save a lot of natural gas that we now use to generate electricity.

If we get this electricity directly next year, we will no longer have to buy natural gas. I was very pleased that Mr. Prime Minister supports this initiative, this issue is very important for Hungary," Orban said.

According to him, Hungary seeks not only a short-term solution, but also a long-term solution in terms of getting electricity from outside the EU.  "We import a lot, in very large volumes and from very far away countries. This issue is important for Hungary because this issue is related to inflation, price increases," Orban noted.

The Hungarian prime minister also announced his visit to Georgia next year.

According to him, he intends to hold a joint intergovernmental meeting with the head of the Georgian government in 2023. This, Orban noted, will be "an important stimulus for economic cooperation."