BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

09/01/2008

Belarus to raise oil transit tariff 16% on Feb 1

MOSCOW. Jan 9 (Interfax) - The Belarussian government has approved a proposal from the Economics Ministry on a hike in the tariff for the transit of Russian oil along the Gomeltransneft Druzhba pipeline, a source in the Belarussian government told Interfax.

The tariff for the transit of oil along the Unecha (Vysokoye)-Adamova Zastava route towards Poland and Germany will be raised 15.7% to 2.8 euros ($4.05) per tonne starting on February 1, 2008.

The tariff for the transit of oil along the Unecha (Vysokoye)-Brody route in the direction of Ukraine will be increased 16.7% to 1.2 euros ($1.75) per tonne.

In addition, the tariff for the transit of imported oil along the Gomeltransneft Druzhba pipeline to the Mozyr Oil Refinery will be raised 13.3% to 0.6 euros ($0.85) per tonne on February 1.

The Belarussian government expects to receive additional revenue of 67.3 billion Belarussian rubles (about $31 million) as a result of the higher tariffs.

The Economics Ministry said the hike on the oil transit tariffs was needed because of growth in the cost of pumping oil in Russia. The tariff for pumping oil along the Druzhba pipeline grew 15.2% on January 1, 2008.

Belarus raised the tariff for the transit of Russian oil via Belarussian territory by more than 30% on February 15. The tariff charged by Gomeltransneft Druzhba to transit oil along the Unecha (Vysokoye)-Adamova Zastava route increased by 35% to $3.5 (not including VAT) for one tonne of oil. The tariff for the Unecha (Vysokoye)-Brody route was raised 31.6% to $1.5 per tonne. Prior to this, Belarus had not altered its oil transit tariffs since 1995.

Some 70 million tonnes of Russian oil are transported through Belarus every year, mainly through the Gomeltransneft Druzhba pipeline. Taking into account supplies to the Mozyr Oil Refinery, the Gomeltransneft Druzhba pipeline pumps 80 million-81 million tonnes of oil per year. Oil has not been transited through the Novopolotsk Druzhba pipe since August 2006 due to an accident on the Russian section of the pipeline.

Revenue from the transit of oil is to total $196.2 million in 2007.

Source:

http://www.interfax.com/3/352886/news.aspx