Museum of Hungarian Petroleum and Gas Industry

The Hungarian Oil and Gas Industry Museum is a national collector's museum in the oil district of Zalaegerszeg. Founded in 1969, the museum is the country's largest open‑air technical museum. It is operated by the Hungarian Oil Industry Museum Foundation, which was established in 1991 by the National Oil and Gas Industry Trust (OKGT), Budapest Bank Ltd., and the Hungarian Hydrocarbon Industry Research and Development Institute.

Its collecting scope includes gathering memorabilia related to the mining and processing of Hungarian hydrocarbons (crude oil, natural gas). In 1993 the museum took over the Vilmos Zsigmondy collection, and since then its tasks also include researching the history of water mining.

The museum has a valuable archive and library, and since 1974 it has published an annual yearbook each year, each dealing with a specific theme.

The museum's director has been Attila Pál Eichinger since May 2022.

Exhibition sites

Zalaegerszeg

The museum's main exhibition site operates on an area of about 30,000 m² next to the Göcseji Village Museum, sharing an entrance with its open‑air museum and the Finnugor Village Museum. The most spectacular part of the museum is the outdoor exhibition, where the tools of hydrocarbon mining, processing and transport can be seen: among others drilling rigs, deep‑well pump engines, damaged rigs rescued after famous gas blowouts, and drill bits used for deep drilling.

Its permanent exhibitions introduce the technology and history of hydrocarbon mining and processing. A representative part of the outdoor exhibition is the sculpture park, where busts of the great figures of the Hungarian industry can be viewed. Geologist Simon Papp's permanent exhibition and the collections are located in the museum's headquarters building.

Bázakerettye

In Bázakerettye, in the former operator building of the BT‑2 measuring station near the Budafapuszta Arboretum, is the exhibition titled "The History of Hydrocarbon Mining in Zala" as well as a memorial room presenting the work of mining engineer Ernő Buda. By prior appointment, throughout the year, the Oil History Walk in Bázakerettye, part of the program titled "In the Cradle of the Hungarian Oil Industry," can be visited in groups, with tours starting at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesdays.

Vecsés

The FGSZ Földgázszállító Zrt. plant in Vác hosts the exhibition "Technical Heritage of Oil and Natural Gas Transportation", which presents the equipment used for pipeline hydrocarbon transport in Hungary. The exhibition is open to groups by appointment only.