Belarus To Increase Transit Tariffs For Russian Oil

Belarus has announced it will sharply increase transit tariffs for Russian oil this month.

The Economy Ministry said that as of February 15, oil-transit tariffs will range from $1.29 to $3.50 per metric ton for every 100 kilometers. That's up from the current range of $0.41 to $0.60.

Relations between Russia and Belarus have been strained recently because of disputes over gas and oil prices.

A previous attempt by Minsk to impose new fees on the shipment of Russian oil across Belarus led last month to a disruption in Russian oil supplies to Western Europe.

Semyon Vainshtok, the president of Russia's state pipeline monopoly, Transneft, said the company on February 5 approved a plan for a pipeline from a point near the Russian-Belarusian border to Primorsk on the Baltic Sea, bypassing Belarus.

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