Belarus demands $1.5 billion compensation from Russia for a tax maneuver in oil industry

The negotiations regarding the compensation of Belarusian oil refineries are under way.

Minsk demands $1.5bn compensation from Moscow for the losses Belarusian oil refineries are suffering due to Russia’s ‘tax maneuver, Euroradio quotes the Russian business newspaper Vedomosti.

“There are no decisions at the moment. We have agreed to calculate the losses together and decide what needs to be done about it,” – a Belarusian official said.

The 3-year maneuver is lowering the customs fee for oil and increasing the tax imposed on the extraction of mineral resources.  The internal oil price will increase which will affect oil processing both in Russia and Belarus. The Belarusian refineries buy Russian oil at the internal prices and Belarus pays the customs fee made on the export of oil products to Russia to compensate for it.

Belarus may lose $250 million in 2015, 300 million - in 2016 and 370 million – in 2017. However, these are not the final numbers as Belarus has not finished the calculation yet.  Representatives of the Russian Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Energy are not commenting on Minsk’s suggestions, the edition notes.

Belarus has suggested lowering the customs fee for oil product export that is paid to Russia (as a compensation for buying oil at the internal price). Aliaksandr Lukashenka said that it was about $4 billion. The sum will be decreased by #1.5 billion next year. Belarus wants to decrease it by another 1 or 1.5 billion dollars.

By the way, Russian experts think that Belarus’ subsidies received from Russia at the cost of oil and gas totaled $10 billion last year.