Belarus will share with Russia the profits from its exports of refined oil products if Moscow drops a plan to impose full duties on crude oil supplies to Belarus, First Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir Semashko said on Tuesday, according to Reuters. Russian sales of crude oil to Belarus had been exempt from export duties until Moscow, during a dispute with Minsk over gas prices, said it would enforce a duty of $180.70 a tonne from this year. On Sunday Belarus gave in to pressure from Russia and agreed a last minute deal to pay more than double for Russian gas -- still far below the market price -- but there was no mention of the crude tariff. "Belarus is ready to share with Russia half of its profits from the export of oil products to encourage Russia to lift its oil export tariffs," Semashko said. "Russia's prime minister has promised to resume discussions of the issue after the New Year's holiday," the Belarus first deputy prime minister added. The New Year holiday in the former Soviet states ends on Jan. 9. Analysts have estimated that Belarus's revenues from exporting oil products refined from Russian crude amounted to $3.7 billion in the first half of 2006 and the cheap crude has been a pillar of the country's economy. Last year Russia supplied between 325,000 and 390,000 barrels per day of Urals crude to Belarus's two major refineries, Naftan and Mozyr. In October Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow was losing billions of dollars every year by allowing its firms to send oil to Belarus' refineries, which were then re-exporting refined products to European markets. Belarus's state oil firm Belneftekhim has suspended 2007 deals with Russian firms since the extra duties were announced but Semashko said there was still enough stored crude to produce at around two-thirds capacity for the next few weeks.
