Govt Widens Share in Oil Revenues
Starting from February 1, the duty on crude export will be the record $333 per a ton vs. today’s $275. The surge of $58 is the most abrupt increase since the duty was imposed. The key reason of such growth is material increase in crude oil prices, which the government takes into account when revising the export duties on crude and petroleum every two months.
A barrel of Russia’s crude averaged nearly $89 in November to December vs. $77 in September through October, said Alexander Sakovich, deputy chief of the customs payment department at the RF Finance Ministry.
But $89 per a barrel of Russia’s crude corresponds to $650 per a ton, so the duty of $333 accounts for more than a half of the export price already. Oil producers will transfer to the budget another $130 from each ton as the severance tax. The fresh, November rate of this tax equals 3,184 rubles per a ton of crude. Therefore, if the crude price remains stable in the nearest two months, the companies will pay $463 (over 70 percent) in taxes from each ton of crude sold on exchanges at $650 per a ton.
The record rates notwithstanding, the authorities don’t intend to ease the tax burden on oil industry. No oil company is the loser in Russia and their aggregate revenues were nearly $40 billion in 2006, Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Shatalov specified not long ago.
by
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of Dec. 26, 2007
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