Russian min says Belarus violates oil transit tariff procedure

ST. PETERSBURG, Oct 4 (PRIME) -- Belarus has violated the procedure of defining a tariff for oil transit, and it and Russia will hold consultations on the matter, Russian Deputy Energy Minister Kirill Molodtsov told reporters Tuesday.

On September 28, Minsk raised the tariff for transit of Russian oil by 50% on average. The order will come in force on October 11. On Monday, aide to the president of Russian oil pipeline monopoly Transneft Igor Dyomin told PRIME that the company was notified of the unilateral decision violating agreements, both the stipulations of an intergovernmental agreement and an approved method of tariff change.

“They have issued a ruling, which comes (in force) in 10 days as they see it. In this regard, we have a procedure for definition of tariffs, which is a joint action of the Federal Antimonopoly Service and the Belarusian ministry for trade and antimonopoly regulation. So, the procedure has been violated from the legal standpoint…We will hold consultations,” Molodtsov said without elaborating.

End