Hungary’s high-quality infrastructure and central location make it an attractive destination for investment. Despite the challenges listed above, Hungary remains an attractive market for U.S. investment and exports. Top reasons for doing business in Hungary include:

• Central location considered to be the gateway to Central/Southeast Europe.
• Well-educated and trained workforce in urban areas.
• Emerging Tier 2 cities with strong education/university background
•  Excellent infrastructure.
• Supply chain opportunities in manufacturing, automotive and electronics industries.
• Government emphasis on innovation and knowledge-based technologies with the slogan of “Invent in Hungary.”

Hungary is a major beneficiary of EU support in the 2021–2027 financial framework, with access to substantial resources. This includes approximately EUR 21.7 billion in cohesion policy funding to strengthen competitiveness, infrastructure, digitalization, and labor market participation, as well as over EUR 8 billion under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) to support rural development and agricultural modernization. In addition, Hungary’s Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP) provides for up to EUR 5.8 billion in grants to facilitate green and digital transitions.

The disbursement of certain funds is linked to the implementation of governance and rule-of-law reforms. While some resources have already been made available, additional allocations remain conditional on further progress. This framework presents both a strong foundation of financial support and an incentive for continued reforms, ensuring that Hungary can fully benefit from the opportunities provided by EU programs.

The 2024 government budget aims to reduce inflation to a single digit by the end of the year, maintain sustainable economic growth and full employment, protect families, pensioners and vulnerable businesses, as well as lower the proportion of budget deficit and public debt to GDP. The government aims to return to the pre-pandemic path of deficit reduction, as well as stable economic growth.  The government passed legislation on the concept of state investments in various economic sectors until December 2035, which would serve as the basis of concrete future projects.  

The government prioritizes keeping energy prices low for consumers. It is heavily dependent on Russia for its energy supply. Hungary has taken steps to transform the energy sector to become climate friendly and stimulate innovation opportunities.  Hungary has achieved remarkable growth in solar photovoltaic (PV).  Through the use of solar and nuclear energy together, 90% of Hungary’s electricity production is expected to be carbon-free by 2030. By 2040, Hungary’s electricity imports are expected to fall from the current average of over 30% to below 20%. 

The country’s total solar power capacity rose beyond 5,200MW with an increase of 1,187MW in 2023. The total capacity of industrial solar parks has reached 3,124MW and that of home solar panels with capacity of less than 50 kilowatts stands at 2,080MW (source: Mavir). The number of households producing solar energy is more than 231,000, exceeding the 200,000-household target set for 2030, and accounts for 70% of solar energy production. The Energy Ministry also announced feed-in tariffs from 2024, when the moratorium on solar panel feed-in is expected to be lifted. 

In 2024-25, nuclear energy accounted for more than one third of electricity generation in Hungary, followed by strong contributions from natural gas (16%), solar (15%) and coal (6%).  Net imports are close to 25%, and other renewables like biofuels and wind account for just under 5%.  Hungary’s energy mix is moving away from coal and gas and toward nuclear and solar, aligning with EU clean energy priorities and climate goals. Hungary’s electricity generation landscape continued to prioritize nuclear power, with significant contributions from other energy resources. Among IEA countries, Hungary has the third-highest share of nuclear, after France and the Slovak Republic. Thanks to the recently completed lifetime extension of the existing units at the Paks NPP beyond the initial 30 years for another approximately 20 years (to between 2032 and 2037), nuclear power can maintain its role in the mix. The Paks II project for two additional nuclear reactor units at the Paks site, relying on Russian investment and construction, has faced significant delays. Hungary aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 40% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. 

Hungary has committed to increasing the current 25-27% share of renewable energy to at least 30% by 2030.  Green transportation is key to achieving these climate goals. Hungary is at the forefront of developing electric mobility in the region, with 2,811 EV charging stations nationwide with over 4,000 charging points and close to 72,000 electric passenger cars on the roads by the end of March 2025. The Government will allocate HUF 60 billion (USD 85 million) to support companies’ purchases of electric cars and an equal amount to the expansion of charging networks in the coming years. The funds will come from the EU and the domestic budget. Zala Zone, located in south-west Hungary, is a public-private partnership and is a proving ground for classic vehicle tests and connected and autonomous mobility solutions. The project was completed in 2021 in collaboration with Austria and Slovenia. 

Hungarian government has taken some steps to diversify its gas sources but remains heavily dependent on Russia. Hungary has shown interest in securing LNG supplies, including from the United States. A recent deal between France’s Engie and Hungary’s state electricity company MVM in October 2025 foresees the annual delivery of 400 million cubic meters of LNG per year to Hungary between 2028 and 2038. Hungary’s annual gas consumption amounted to about 8.5 billion cubic meters in 2023. Hungary has a 15-year supply contract with Russia’s Gazprom for 4.5 billion cubic meters a year through 2036, which has been supplemented with additional supply agreements in recent years.  Hungary reexports some of the Russian natural gas it purchases to neighboring countries.

Hungary’s oil company MOL operates a refinery in Hungary and another in Slovakia via subsidiary Slovnaft. The majority of the oil feeding both refineries is purchased from Russia via the Druzhba pipeline, with a much smaller quantity coming via Croatia’s Adria pipeline along with what Hungary produces domestically. Hungary could purchase additional seaborne crude oil, including from the United States, by utilizing the unused capacity in the Adria pipeline.