Business news

MINSK, 4 April (BelTA) – Belarus and Russia will reach equal gas prices by 2025, Belarus Vice Premier Vladimir Semashko said in an interview to the Belarus One TV Channel.

According to Vladimir Semashko, the economic effect from settling oil and gas issues will make up about $500 million for Belarus in 2017 and nearly $800 million in 2018 and 2019 each.

“The aim for Belarus is to have gas prices equal or very close to those of Russia by 1 January 2025, at least to the prices the Russian regions bordering on Belarus (Smolensk Oblast, Bryansk Oblast), Veliky Novgorod, and Moscow pay,” Vladimir Semashko said.

As BelTA earlier reported, Russia will resume oil supplies to Belarus to the previous volumes (24 million tonnes per year) before 13 April. The new agreement is valid through 2024. “Eighteen million tonnes will be processed at oil refineries till 2019. It is absolutely acceptable for us and beneficial for the refineries. Another 6 million will go through customs clearance once again. I will not go deep into the details of this procedure but what is important is that the custom duty from it will be transferred to the Belarusian budget,” Vladimir Semashko remarked. Moreover, Russia has lifted from Belarus the obligation to export 1 million tonnes of refined oil products per year.