"While a halt in Russian oil and gas supplies to Hungary cannot be ruled out given the ongoing war in Ukraine and hostilities between Russia and the EU, we believe there is a lower risk of the negative scenario materializing," Fitch said, commenting on the rating action.
"We also believe that MOL is better placed to weather material disruptions in Russian supplies due to its increasing capability to replace Russian oil by half by December 2023 with a full self-sufficiency expected by 2025 and source gas from alternative routes," it added.
An improved operational profile in MOL's upstream or petrochemical businesses, lower reliance on Russian hydrocarbons, keeping EBITDA net leverage sustainably below 1.5x, and a favorable resolution of the dispute with the Croatian government over MOL's stake in INA are factors that could lead to a positive rating action, Fitch said.
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