Summary
Slovakiaโs gas transmission system operator, Eustream, launched a final public consultation on October 7, 2025, regarding its proposed reference price methodology for access to the national gas transmission network. The consultation will remain open until December 7, 2025.
More details are available on the Eustream consultation page.
Background
For many years, Eustream played a major role in transporting Russian natural gas to Western European markets. However, its importance declined following the construction of Nord Stream I, a substantial volume of gas still transited through Slovakia to destinations such as Austria and Italy.
Since January 1, 2024, gas flows via Ukraine have been completely halted. As a result, transmission volumes have dropped to less than 10% of historical levels, and Eustreamโs revenues have fallen accordingly.
To offset this decline, Eustream received regulatory approval for a 300% year-on-year tariff increase effective January 1, 2025, following a public consultation held in 2024.
Now, less than a year later, the company is seeking another significant increase - approximately 80% on top of current tariffs, starting January 1, 2026.
Critics argue that the proposed pricing and regulatory approach primarily benefits Eustream by ensuring that its revenues remain comparable to pre-conflict levels, despite the steep drop in gas transmission volumes.
Impact of Proposed Tariff Increase on C&I Customers
The financial impact of the proposed tariff increase will vary by customer, depending on their supply contract structure.
- In most gas supply contracts, transmission costs are rebilled to customers based on their reserved capacity and the applicable entry/exit point.
- Some suppliers include transmission costs in the commodity price, meaning they may trigger price-revision clauses to reflect the higher tariffs.
- Other suppliers publish separate price lists for transmission fees, which will need to be updated once the new tariffs take effect.
If approved, the new tariffs will immediately affect most gas consumers, likely leading to double-digit percentage increases in overall gas prices per MWh.
In many cases, transmission costs could exceed distribution costs โ a situation that is highly irregular. SPP-D, which operates a distribution network more than ten times longer than Eustreamโs, would normally have higher per-MWh costs, not lower.
Additionally, Slovakiaโs transmission costs per MWh would significantly exceed those of neighboring transmission system operators across the Central and Eastern European region.
Next steps
The public consultation remains open until December 7, 2025, giving stakeholders time to submit feedback or objections. Strong pushback is expected from large industrial consumers and industry associations that will be most affected by the proposed tariff increases.
At NUS Consulting Group, we are closely monitoring the consultation process and assisting businesses in assessing and mitigating the impact of upcoming regulatory and pricing changes.
Proposed tariffs New vs. Old
