Medvedev decides not to adjust MET; export duty, other sources to provide additional revenue
GORKI. Sept 28 (Interfax) - The Russian government has decided not to adjust the mineral extraction tax (MET), Natalya Timakova, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev's spokeswoman, told reporters in Gorki following a meeting devoted to the issue and chaired by the prime minister.
"As a result of the meeting, conducted by the prime minister, Dmitry Medvedev reached the decision not to adjust the MET, moreover alternatives will be considered to reduce the export duty on oil more slowly, and adjust several other sources to obtain additional budget revenue," she said.
The Finance Ministry has proposed altering the formula for calculating the MET in order to collect more of the additional revenue exporters are earning due to the ruble devaluation. In all the Finance Ministry plans to raise 600 billion rubles. The idea is opposed by other profile government bodies as well as the oil companies themselves, who have complained about the proposal in a letter to the president.
"The main thing is that we are not talking about raising the MET. We are talking about changing the size of the exemption used to determine the tax basis, which is fair given the ruble weakening," Finance Minister Siluanov has said. "The oil companies are far from impoverished. They need to work with costs, avoid increased spending," he said.
