Russian Econ Ministry has submitted 2014 tariff freezing proposals to govt - Ulyukayev
MOSCOW. Sept 18 (Interfax) - The Russian Economic Development Ministry has submitted proposals on tariff regulation, which include freezing tariffs in 2014, to the government, Economic Development Minister Alexei Ulyukayev said in the State Duma.
"We've submitted them to the government and we are hoping we will be supported, this counter-cyclical mechanism to regulate tariffs in the sphere of gas supply, rail freight and energy supply," he said.
The mechanism means that at stages when difficulties arise with economic growth, lowering coefficients will be applied it the maximum tariff indexation level defined by the Russian president as the level of inflation for the past year, he said.
"But in the current period's conditions even that would be insufficient because we have submitted a proposal not to index tariffs in general in 2014, and to index rail freight tariffs from January 2015, and gas and electricity tariffs in July 2015. And then have zero [tariff] indexation in 2014 at 4.6% inflation and, as we forecast, 4.8% in 2015 and 2016," he said.
Ulyukayev said the annual revenue shortfall as agreed with Russian Railways (RZD) would be 77 billion rubles. "It's a lot of money of course, but we think it will be possible to do this without curtailing the company's investment program," Ulyukayev said.
Households stand to gain more than 40 billion rubles from the tariff freeze next year, Ulyukayev said. This will be around 130 billion rubles for enterprises.
He said the authorities were finding dialog with some monopolies more constructive than with others. "We are able to find solutions to many problems with Russian Grids , including to the last mile problem. The degree of mutual understanding is so far perhaps a lot lower with the railways," he said.