Under the decree, the duty on light by-products of petroleum refining (such as benzene, toluene, propane, butane, oils, etc.) shall be raised to 68.2 dollars per ton, from the current $57, whereas the duty on dark by-products (liquid fuels) shall be lowered to 36.7 dollars per ton, down from $45.4.
Alexander Sakovich, deputy head of the Finance Ministry's Customs Duties Department, explained to RIA Novosti that a new method had just been introduced to calculate export duties on refined petroleum by-products. According to him, calculations will be based on the two-month average of the price of Russian crude on the world market rather than the duty on crude exports, as has been the case until now.
The margin between the average price of crude and the untaxed minimum of $109.5 per ton will be multiplied by 0.236 for fuel oil and by 0.438 for other by-products, Sakovich said. The newly-set duties have been calculated on the basis of Russian crude's average price in Nmvember and December 2004, or 36.36 dollars per barrel, he said.
