Expert: Gas for Belarus will cost $200-250 per 1000 cubic meters

However, the gas price may have dropped by 50 percent towards the end of the year. Meanwhile, we have been consuming the Russian gas free of charge and will pay for it post factum.
Belarus does not know yet how much it is going to pay for the Russian gas that has been consumed since January 1, 2009. The countries have not reached a deal over the price yet, although we have already been consuming.

“Not yet, we have not reached a deal. Belarus was not limited by December 31, so there is time", Gazprom spokeswoman Tatiana Golubovich told the European Radio for Belarus.

According to Valiantsin Vialichka, Belarus' ambassador to Ukraine, a new price will be set during a meeting between Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenka and Russian president Dmitry Medvedev in February in Moscow. Belarus will be paying post factum, Tatiana Golubovich told the European Radio for Belarus.


People should not fear that the price would be unexpectedly high. Yekaterina Kravchenko, an analyst with the Russian investment company Brokercreditservice, said in an interview with the European Radio for Belarus that the price for Belarus would always be lower than the price for Ukraine. According to the analyst, although the countries (Russia and Belarus) have certain misunderstandings, they do not have wars like in the case of Ukraine. Besides, Russia is dependant on the transit through Belarus. Therefore, one could definitely count on discounts this year.

Yekaterina Kravchenko: “Taking into account that there is a discount for Belarus in principle (the prices for Belarus have alaways been lower than the prices for Ukraine) and that there have been no pending serious conflicts between Belarus and Russia, I think that price for Belarus could hover around $220-250. However, this is the fact that it will have been halved by the end of the year".

Moreover, the price at the end of this year may even become less than the one last year. The point is that the current gas price is tied with the price of oil which was 6-9 months ago.

Anyway, just like in case with Ukraine, the price for Belarus will not be determined by an economic formula only. It will also be determined by a political decision of the both sides. However, different from Ukraine, Belarus enjoys a more advantageous position. Therefore, one can hope for a price that will be lower than $360 per 1000 cubic meters of the Russian gas.




Photo: bymedia.net