Business news

YEKATERINBURG, 11 April (BelTA-TASS) – The Union State of Belarus and Russia is ready to carry out an analysis of the price for the gas supplied to Belarus by Gazprom if there is such a need, State Secretary of the Union State Grigory Rapota said during his visit to Yekaterinburg.

“We are ready to make a reappraisal. We are ready to take a look at the matter together with the federal authorities. For now we have what we call “bargaining”. There are no questions from economic entities and federal authorities at the current moment. Once we have them, we will consider them,” he said.

According to the State Secretary, the Union State will take part in the talks only if one of the parties needs to raise the issue at the legal level, i.e. adopt some agreement or make adjustments. “Only then we will take part in the talks,” he said answering the question about the Union State’s possible participation in the discussion of the gas price.

Grigory Rapota noted that the agreement between Gazprom and Belarus envisages equal conditions for economic entities. “It is the main reason to discuss the price parameters - whether this principle is violated or not. If it is violated, then we introduce amendments. If it is not, everything will remain in its place,” he said.

Belarus’ Prime Minister Andrei Kobyakov believes $80 per 1,000 cubic meters to be a fair price for the Russian gas. Earlier in his interview to the RIA Novosti news agency he said: “As for natural gas, its price in early 2014 was $165 per 1,000 cubic meters. The exchange rate of the Russian ruble was RUB32-33 per $1. As of 1 January 2015, the gas price fell to $142 with the exchange rate of the Russian ruble exceeding RUB60 per $1. It would be reasonable to have the gas price at $80, not $142.”