Russian gas price for Belarus may appear to be lower than year ago

Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Arkady Dvorkovich has provided certain details concerning the cost of the Russian gas for Belarus. He said the final price will be announced by Gazprom’s official representative after necessary documents are signed. The price will not exceed $130 per 1000 cubic meters, Dvorkovich said.

“I am speaking about a diminisher that will be applied to the contract price leading the prices to the levels that were agreed upon and included in our agreements. The sides found mechanisms that allow our Belarusian partners to provide additional subsidies for domestic prices of gas and set lowers prices for final consumers,” the deputy prime minister said.

The price ceiling Dvorkovich mentioned is lower than the price for Belarus earlier reported by Russian mass media. Earlier this March, information was disseminated with a reference to a letter by Vice Chairman of Gazprom Bard Valery Golubev to Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak saying that starting January 1 2017, the Russian gas price for Belarus is $141,1 thousand cubic meters or by 6.81% more than in 2016.

In other words, the new price may appear to be even lower than it was last year. However, EADaily has reported earlier, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has already declared today that the gas price dispute between Russia and Belarus has been resolved within the interests of both sides.