Russian govt adopts resolution reducing export duties on grain to zero until end of 2026

MOSCOW. Sept 22 (Interfax) - The Russian government has adopted a resolution according to which the collection of export duties on grain is suspended through December 31, 2026.

The document, signed on September 19, 2026, was posted on the official portal of legal information. It provides for a zero rate on the export of wheat and meslin, as well as barley and corn.

In addition, export duties on sunflower oil and meal are fixed until the end of the year at the level of August (7,748 rubles per tonne of oil and 312 rubles per tonne of meal) and cannot be higher than these figures.

The document applies to legal relations that arose from September 1, 2026.

These measures will make it possible to support producers and exporters of grain and oilseed crops, as well as producers of vegetable oil who have encountered difficulties in exporting products, Deputy Economic Development Minister Vladimir Ilyichev previously said.

"The decision aims to support Russian producers and exporters of grain and oilseed crops amid the restructuring of export logistics. The measures will make it possible to reduce the costs of market participants, make the conditions for selling products more predictable and support the export potential of the industry," the Agriculture Ministry said.

Russia introduced a grain damper mechanism on June 2, 2021, which stipulates floating duties on the export of wheat, corn and barley and the return of funds received from them to subsidize agricultural producers. The duties are calculated weekly from indicators based on the prices of export contracts registered on the Moscow Exchange. The duty is 70% of the difference between the reference and indicative prices. The base price is currently 18,000 rubles per tonne for wheat and 17,875 rubles per tonne for barley and corn.

The Russian government implemented the sunflower damper mechanism on September 1, 2021, with duties initially calculated in dollars, and in rubles as of July 2022. Their amount is 70% of the difference between the base and indicative prices (the arithmetic average of market prices for the month). The base price for sunflower oil is 90,750 rubles per tonne, and for sunflower meal it is 17,463 rubles per tonne.

Initially, this mechanism was established for one year. In August 2024, the floating duties were extended for two years until August 31, 2026. In October 2025, the government extended them until August 31, 2028.