5 Oct 2011 14:11

Russian Finance Ministry sees no reason to lift prohibitive duty on gasoline

MOSCOW. Oct 5 (Interfax) - The Finance Ministry sees no reason at present to lift the prohibitive export duty on gasoline, Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Shatalov said on Wednesday.

"They could remain for a long time, for now there are no grounds to lift them," Shatalov told reporters.

Oil prices are currently high and the return on production and exports is also fairly high, he said.

The prohibitive duty on gasoline, based on a coefficient of 0.90, was imposed in May to tackle a fuel crisis on the domestic market. The duty amounted to $408.30 per tonne in May. In July, the government imposed a similar duty on straight-run gasoline.

The export duty on gasoline was $370.20 per tonne as of October 1.