Translated material
Negotiations in Belarusian
Minsk does not believe in rising gas prices from April 1
The Belarusian authorities have not given up hope of receiving benefits on gas prices, even despite the fact that two weeks ago Russian Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov in Minsk confirmed his commitment to the previously signed contract . Yesterday, First Deputy Prime Minister of Belarus Vladimir Semashko came to the Gazprom office in Moscow. However, the head of Gazprom, Alexey Miller, who met with him, refused to discuss the price, which, according to the formula prescribed in the contract, should increase from April 1 by about $9, to $128 per thousand cubic meters. As a source in the republic’s Ministry of Energy told Interfax, when negotiations were still underway, “in Belarus they believe that the price of gas from April has not yet been finally determined,” and the purpose of the delegation, which, in addition to Mr. Semashko, included First Deputy Minister of Energy Eduard Tovpenets and General Director “ Beltransgaz Vladimir Mayorov - to maintain the price in force in the first quarter ($119.6 per thousand cubic meters).As Gazprom explained to Vremya Novostei, at the end of April, the Russian concern will simply issue acts to Beltransgaz for the gas supplied in accordance with the contract price. And this is where the price discussion ends. Unless, of course, Minsk goes into open conflict by refusing to sign documents.
The only constructive result of yesterday's negotiations, as reported by the Gazprom press service, is that Alexey Miller and Vladimir Semashko decided to create a joint working group on a project to build a power plant in Belarus. The Belarusian authorities propose to build a gas-fired thermal power plant with a capacity of 450 MW every time friction arises in relations between the two countries in the field of fuel supplies. This project was first announced in 2004, during a real gas war between Moscow and Minsk with a daily cessation of transit through the territory of this country. At that time, Itera acted as a potential investor, which partially supplied Beltransgaz. The project has not moved forward one step since then.
However, there is one more aspect that makes this project not very interesting for Gazprom. The fact is that Inter RAO UES, which from the summer will be controlled by the state-owned Rosenergoatom and, possibly, Vnesheconombank, has already signed a contract for the supply of Russian electricity to Belarus and plans to increase export volumes. If Gazprom helps Minsk increase energy capacity, it will turn out that it will compete with Inter RAO on the Belarusian market, and from a political point of view this is not entirely correct. In addition, Gazprom itself has always been critical of the fact that Inter RAO competes with Russian gas exports on the Finnish market.
Investments from Gazprom also look unlikely because Minsk does not always keep its obligations. Yesterday, Mr. Miller once again recalled that the introduction by the Cabinet of Ministers of Belarus of a 19 percent non-tax deduction from Beltransgaz revenue to the budget investment fund (about $70 million this year) contradicts the terms of the agreement on the sale of shares of this enterprise to Gazprom. As is known, the Russian concern has already bought a 25% stake in Beltransgaz in two installments for $1.25 billion, and in two years it should become an equal co-owner of the gas transport enterprise along with the government of Belarus. According to Gazprom, the purchase and sale agreement contains a clause stating that Minsk will not significantly change the operating conditions of Beltransgaz as a new shareholder enters. However, some time ago the government increased the withdrawal rate from 8 to 19%. Minsk continues to insist that the agreement to create a joint venture on the basis of Beltransgaz was signed in accordance with Belarusian legislation, which creates the necessary legal basis for the availability of such contributions, since they are provided for by the country's budget code.
The delegation of Naftogaz of Ukraine is holding negotiations with Gazprom on the timing and procedure for payments for gas, Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Tymoshenko said yesterday after negotiations with US President George W. Bush. “Discussions are currently underway regarding the timing of settlements, the procedure for settlements and how to continue to build transparent, honest and absolutely understandable relations for the two countries in the gas supply system without intermediaries,” said the head of the Cabinet. “It’s already spring outside, thank God, and we can conduct these negotiations calmly, without fuss.” According to Vremya Novostei , the second day of negotiations, which started on Monday, ended unsuccessfully. In this regard, an extraordinary meeting of shareholders of Ukrgazenergo, which continues to be the only legitimate (having appropriate contracts) gas importer, never took place in Kyiv. At the same time, the shareholders - Naftogaz and RosUkrEnergo - traditionally blame each other for the disruption of the event.