Govt, FAS thinking of making license holders sell oil on exchanges
NIZHNEVARTOVSK. March 11 (Interfax) - The Russian government and the Federal Antimonopoly Service are thinking of incorporating a requirement to trade oil on exchanges into licenses to develop oil fields, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin told reporters.
"On the request of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) we are looking at the possibility padding licenses for several major fields with the obligation of selling oil and petroleum products through exchange trading," Sechin said.
Sechin added that the government could support a FAS initiative to limit the presence of oil companies on regional petroleum sales markets. "It is necessary to fight against monopolization. The fight against monopolies is positive," he said. Earlier the FAS proposed limited the presence of oil companies on regional markets at 35%.
In rectifying this issue, it is necessary to bear in mind the supply sources of petroleum products to these markets, Sechin said. "If in some places there are no other suppliers, it will be necessary to figure this out," Sechin stressed.