The Russian government’s recent decision to raise the excise tax on motor fuel by 1 RUB/l in 2018 may lead to serious losses for the country’s domestic refining industry.
Russia hopes to become a major supplier of gasoline, diesel fuel and other oil products to the Asia-Pacific region during the next several years, with help from the planned launch of large-scale refineries in the Far East that will be built with the participation of Asian investors.
Amid declining profits in the domestic market, Russia’s national oil company and leading oil producer, Rosneft, is considering expanding in the European Union (EU) and US refining markets.
Russia plans to increase the volume of oil it refined this year, despite Western sanctions and the ever-deteriorating business environment, according to an official spokesperson for Alexander Novak, Russia’s minister of energy.