Media: Subsidiary of Russia’s Ministry of Energy becomes a monopoly fuel supplier to separatist-held territories of Ukraine
Russian export company, Promsyrieimport, owned by the Ministry of Energy of the Russian Federation is a monopoly supplier of fuel to the uncontrolled territories of the Luhansk and Donetsk Oblasts, as reported by Ukrainian Liga.net news website.
According to the publication, in 2016 Promsyrieimport supplied the separatist-held territories of Ukraine with more than 200,000 tons of gasoline, diesel fuel, and motor oils for $116 million. This is 86% of all the fuels and lubricants sent to the separatist republics and 100% of all motor fuel (except liquefied natural gas). In the first half of 2017, Promsyrieimport supplied 93,000 tons of petroleum products for a total of $64 million.
According to the investigation, the company delivers oil products to the separatist-held territories as a special export, that is, without payment of customs duties. In July of this year, the export duty on gasoline and diesel fuel was $24.2 per ton in Russia.
“Despite the benefits, gasoline and diesel fuel in DPR (Donetsk People’s Republic) and LPR (Luhansk People’s Republic) are more expensive than in the Rostov Oblast, on an average of $0.08 - 0.25 per liter,” the news agency writes.
Promsyrieimport purchases all oil products for the separatist territories from Bashneft OJSC petroleum processing plants owned by Rosneft OJSC. In autumn of 2016, the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine added Bashneft to the sanctions list.