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Belarus Headlines XLIX Office for a Democratic Belarus Belarus Headlines Issue XLIX January 20, 2010 Who and How Won Russia-Belarus Hydrocarbon Wars This article was posted at the Belarusian analytical portal www.zautra.by and translated by the ODB. By Mikalay Nekrashevich Energy conflicts between Office for a Democratic Russia and Belarus are not Belarus new. Experts note that over the last decade there were two gas, two oil and one Inside this issue: electricity war. On the eve of 2010 another hydrocar- bon battle has erupted be- Russia-Belarus 1-2 tween the allies and it now hydrocarbon that takes place on two wars. Who is the fronts – oil and electricity. winner? The signature says: “Do not turn on!” However, the history of Belarusian-Russian energy Nazis’ activities in Belarus the failures of the agree- relations shows that a very Politics and 3-5 during the World War II. ments on the Customs Un- similar episode took place ion and the Treaty on the Society at the beginning of 2004. At Gazprom resumed natural gas Union State for the unifica- that time, the situation deliveries to Belarus after an tion of export duties on oil 6-7 seemed to be more critical, Finance and almost 24-hour suspension, and petroleum products. as at stake was the supply Economics but without signing a contract. Due to rising oil prices, Bel- of all energy resources – Until the spring of 2004, gas arus has become a fairly gas, oil, and electricity. was supplied by independent large exporter of petroleum companies – Itera, TNK, and First Gas War products to the European Transneft – with Gazprom’s market. There was a grow- permission. ing supply flow of duty-free It was in 2004 that for the Russia Won low-cost crude oil from Rus- first time since the collapse sia into Belarus; and, this of the Soviet Union Belarus The price of gas was raised was of interest not only to did not have a contract with the Belarusians but also to We on the Web from US$ 29 to almost US$ Russia for gas deliveries. 47 per 1 thousand cubic me- Russian suppliers. The rea- www.democraticbelarus.eu The Russian gas monopoly, ters. During the negotiations in sons for this was the lower Gazprom, and Beltransgaz 2004, Russia forced the Bela- export tax that the exporter were unable to reach agree- rusian side to agree to sell its has to pay to the Belarusian ment on the price of sup- transit company Beltransgaz budget. However, in January plies and transit tariffs. and immediately accelerated 2004, at the insistence of Gazprom cut off Belarus' all pre-sale preparations. Russia, this fee was equal- gas flow for one day and ized. Alyaksandr Lukashenka First Oil War lashed out at Moscow, Continued on p.2 At the same time, the dispute comparing the attitude of drew Moscow’s attention to the “brotherly nation” to the PAGE 2 BELARUS HEADLINES ISSUE XLIX Who and How Won Russia-Belarus Hydrocarbon Wars (continuation) Outcome: Belarus won cember, gas prices for Bela- The tax remained equal only for 3 rus in 2008, As a result, the months. In April 2004, Russia raised it 2009, and 2010 Belarusian- to US$ 31.5, and Belarus to US$ 30.5 were going to be Russian agree- dollars per 1 ton. With each new in- 67%, 80% and ments estab- crease the difference in this fee was 90% of the Euro- lished that the becoming greater, thus attracting pean price, mi- distribution of cheap resources to Belarus and allow- nus transporta- revenues from ing to earn more on the export of pe- tion costs and customs duties troleum products. export duties, on oil exports between the two In 2004, oil imports in Belarus respectively. countries would amounted to 17.8 million tons, while be the follow- in 2005 it rose to 19.3 million tons. Result: Draw ing: in 2007 - More crude oil meant more oil prod- 70% to 30%, in ucts for export. In 2004, exports of Although the fact 2008 - 80% to petroleum products totalled 12.9 mil- that the price of 20%, and in lion tons worth US$ 3.3 billion, and in US$ 47.6 per 1 thousand cubic meters 2009 - 85% to 15% in Russia’s fa- 2005 - 13.5 million tons worth US$ rose at once to US$ 101.3, thereby lead- vour. 4.8 billion. ing to an increase in the cost of gas im- ports from US$ 1 billion to US$ 2 bil- To stop this progressive transforma- lion, Belarus has managed to wrest sig- Russia won tion of Belarus into the largest Euro- nificant concessions. It was not the Euro- According to experts, Belarus lost pean exporter of petrol and gas, there pean gas prices, and there was a suffi- about 40% of its revenues from oil had to be another oil war. The conflict ciently long transition period towards exports. In an interview with Reuters, of 2007 led to the introduction of an new prices. President Lukashenka stated that the export duty on oil supplied to Belarus. amount of losses from Russia’s ac- tions was approximately US$ 5 bil- However, the terms of the contract, as lion. First Electricity War practice of Belarusian-Russian relations On 1 January 2004 electricity supplied in the energy sphere shows, will probably 18/01/2009 lead to another – third – gas war – to- by Russia’s "Inter RAO UES” was cut Source: zautra.by, ODB off after Belarus refused to pay the wards the end of 2010, when the four- year agreement will be due for revision. new price. The flow was resumed only in August 2004. The current situation with oil also points to the possibility of such a conflict. Tem- Result: Draw porary compromise, found by the parties after Russia introduced an export duty on An unresolved dispute over Rus- No one was to benefit from this con- oil to Belarus in 2007, has now turned sian oil exports to Belarus esca- flict. Russia's largest importer of elec- into a new oil battle. lated again with Moscow reduc- tricity – Belarus – bought only 1.5 billion kWh in 2004, compared to 3,7 ing flows to Belarusian refineries, billion kWh that it imported in 2002 Second oil war traders said Friday [January 15, and 3.5 billion kWh in 2003. How- 2010], in a move likely to revive ever, already in 2005, Belarus bought In December 2006, Russia, realizing the fears of supply disruptions to 4.5 billion kWh of electricity. futility of its attempts to persuade Minsk Europe. to share the profits from selling oil prod- ucts, introduced a customs duty on ex- Traders said Russian pipeline mo- Second Gas War ports of strategic resource in Belarus. nopoly Transneft had told oil Extra physical and mental effort was The military action resulted in the termi- firms to reroute one-third of flows needed to resolve another gas conflict nation of oil transit through Belarus to scheduled for Belarusian refiner- on the New Years’ eve that started in Europe. ies to the Polish Baltic port of the late 2006. After long wrangling Under the compromise agreement, signed Gdansk, which is on the same caused by Russia’s stated intention to on 13 January 2007, the fee should be pipeline as Belarus but further levied on oil, which goes for processing commercialize its energy relations west. with all partners, Moscow and Minsk and further export abroad in the form of managed to find a consensus. Accord- petroleum products. Oil supplies used Source: The Moscow Times ing to the document signed on 31 De- domestically were going to be duty free. PAGE 3 BELARUS HEADLINES ISSUE XLIX Belarusian literature loses its English voice The past year brought us sad news of little disap- the loss of Vera Rich, a famous trans- pointed when lator of Belarusian literature, who our priest told passed away at her house in London us that, al- on December 20, 2009. though the lit- A web-site dedicated to Belarusian urgy was the culture A Belarus Miscellany notes Byzantine rite, that “Belarusian literature and Bela- it would be in rusians could not have a better friend Old Slavonic, than Vera Rich. For close to 50 years, not Greek, be- she has made Belarusian literature cause I had and especially Belarusian poetry ac- learned some cessible to a much larger world than Greek at that of Belarus and the Belarusian- school. How- speaking Belarusian diaspora.” ever, I thought, Vera made the poems by such Bela- whatever lan- rusian authors as Janka Kupala, Jakub guage it is in, it Kolas, Maksim Bahdanovič, Tsiotka, will be interest- Natallia Arsen’eva, Ales’ Harun, ing. Vera Rich in Brussels, March 26, 2008 Larysa Heneush, Zmitrok Biadulia, And, indeed, Kandrat Krapiva, Volha Ipatava, Nil the other young people found it the Soviet Union and managed to Hilevich and many other available to ‘interesting’. But for me, it was the be- visit Belarus only in 1991 after the the English-speaking audience. ginning of a new life. When I walked country got its independence. Future poet, translator, author, jour- into that beautiful little church I suddenly In 2004, a new book of Belarusian nalist, and editor was born on April had a strange feeling that for the first poetry translated by Vera Rich Poems 24, 1936 in London. time in my life, I was where I ought to on Liberty: Reflections for Belarus The web-site of Belarusians in Britain be. I could not get the feeling out of my was published in Prague.
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