Duty on sunflower oil exports from Russia to drop 71.4% MoM in May, duty on meal to remain zero - Agriculture Ministry

MOSCOW. April 27 (Interfax) - The export duty on sunflower oil from Russia is set to drop 71.4% month-on-month to 4,650 rubles per tonne in May from 16,222.4 in April, the Agriculture Ministry said.

The export duty on sunflower meal has been reset to zero from 749.6 rubles per tonne in April, thereby returning it to the level that it was in January and March of this year.

The indicative prices used to calculate the duties were $1,291.8 per tonne for sunflower oil versus $1,270.9 a month ago, and $196.1 per tonne for sunflower meal versus $203.8, respectively.

The duty is 70% of the difference between the base price and the indicative price, which is the arithmetic mean of market prices for the month.

The duties for May were calculated using the new base prices set by the government this week. Thus, the base export price for sunflower oil increased from 82,500 to 90,750 rubles per tonne and from 15,875 to 17,463 rubles per tonne for sunflower meal.

The Russian government implemented the "sunflower damper" mechanism on September 1, 2021, with duties initially calculated in dollars, and in rubles as pf July 2022.

In August 2024, the floating duties were extended for two years, until September 1, 2026. In October 2025, the government extended them until August 31, 2028.