Belarus expects to sign oil supply contract with Russia for 2013 soon

        Belarus hopes to sign an oil supply contract with Russia for 2013 in the next one to two weeks. Belarus expects to get about 23 million tonnes of oil next year, President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko said at the meeting with members of the Club of Editors-in-Chief of the CIS, Baltic States and Georgia:
      “I think we will agree on 23 million tonnes. The only problem is a technical one: whether this amount can be piped. Piping 22 million tonnes is definitely technically possible. We are ready to have the remaining 1 million delivered by rail, although the profitability will be less in this case. But we can sell the petrol to the West where prices are higher, and get our profits.  
       Belarus insists on exactly 23 million tonnes as this amount is necessary for the Belarusian oil refiners, which, thanks to the modernization, are capable of processing large volumes of oil. Russia agreed to supply 23 million tonnes of oil in exchange for Belarus-made high-octane gasoline. For Belarus, such conditions are acceptable, the President said. But this runs contrary to the spirit of the SES and the Union State that we are building. We should ensure freedom of movement of goods”.