Is Lukashenka going to buy oil for world prices? :: Charter'97 :: News

The government of Belarus is now investigating the matter of possible oil deliveries to the Belarusian refineries from the Baltic ports over the Ventspils- Navapolatsk pipeline, first deputy prime minister Uladzimir Semashka reported to Alyaksandr Lukashenka during the head of the state’s visiting the “Druzhba” unitary enterprise in Navapolatsk. The report of the first deputy prime minister was commented to the press-center of the Charter’97 by a well-known economist, head of the Mizes Center, Yaraslau Ramanchuk.

Oil deliveries by tankers are the world-accepted practice. There is no know-how here. Baltic and Polish refineries work in this way. When there is no pipeline but there is access to sea – the question is easily solved. But this perspective should be considered from the point of view of the price. And prices in this case will be at the world level. But then it is equally possible to buy oil for the world prices from Russia.

If the Belarusians are going to work this way than all the dreams of the government about oil” fringe benefits” may be forgotten. Now we see that the transfer to world prices opens all “blackness” of the schemes employed by the Belarusian refineries. The prices for our oil from Russia are far from being the market ones. Nevertheless Belarusian oil producers are saying that they work for losses. Yes, such is the taxation and such are the “gray schemes” which, however, they do not want to drop.

Russian companies also declared that it had become not profitable to work in Belarus. It is also unreal. Under the present conditions, the losses of Russian businessmen are minimal. I think, that they have been agreed with the Russian government.

And on the whole, for realization of the strategy offered by Semashka, the Belarusian authorities have to improve their relationship with either Latvia or Ukraine. And their decision on cooperation with Belarus will be coordinated by the EU. Oil business is very politicized. If Belarusians want to penetrate these projects they need real and not declarative normalization of their relationship with EU,” regards the economist.