Belarus is looking for ways to replace imports of Russian oil, considering options for crude supplies from various regions of the world through the ports of Ukraine and the Baltic states, a senior executive of state-run oil company Belneftekhim has said, according to TASS.
“We have been looking for alternative crude supplies for quite a while. We are considering the possibility of supplies from CIS countries, the Middle East and Africa to our refineries both through Ukrainian ports and through the ports of the Baltic states,” Belneftekhim Deputy Chairwoman Svetlana Gurina said in an interview with the SB. Belarus Today newspaper published on Tuesday.
Transport corridors are clear to the Belarusian side, Gurina claimed, adding though that “the decision will only be made if alternative supplies are economically viable.”
“I should note though that as the tax maneuver is being implemented and the Russian oil price approaches the global price alternative supplies will become increasingly attractive,” according to Gurina.
Belarus is looking for crude supplies alternative to those from Russia due to an increase in the oil price amid the ongoing tax maneuver in the Russian oil sector. Belarus insists on compensations for losses from deteriorating terms of oil sales, whereas Russia suggests that integration should be deepened in accordance with the Treaty on the Creation of a Union State of Russia and Belarus signed in 1999. According to the Belarusian Finance Ministry’s estimates, budget losses from the implementation of Russia’s tax maneuver will total around $400 million in 2019.
Russia’s oil supplies to Belarusian refineries will equal 18 million tons by the end of 2019 as planned, the Belneftekhim deputy chairwoman stated.
“Refining capacity utilization was reduced in the second quarter [due to the incident with contaminated oil] when crude was not delivered via pipelines. A set of measures was implemented, whereas now crude is supplied to refineries as planned, deliveries will stand at 18 million tons by the end of the year,” she added.
