Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:
Vladimir Putin: Mr Sechin, the agreement on the Customs Union between Russia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus became effective January 1. As you and our partners in Kazakhstan and Belarus know, oil and gas supplies were not mentioned in the agreement. We are planning to sign separate documents on this issue before July 1, 2010. How is this work going?
Igor Sechin: Mr Putin, we work in line with the signed documents. You are absolutely right, an additional agreement on hydrocarbon supplies needs to be signed. All these documents will be discussed, signed and implemented before July 1.
During the past months, in November and December, we have been discussing these issues with our partners at meetings in Yalta, at the EurAsEC session in St Petersburg, and at a meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Russia-Belarus Union State in Moscow. We plan to finish this work within the next few months.
Vladimir Putin: Belarus has long bought Russian oil at a customs duty discount of more than 36%. What about this agreement?
Igor Sechin: You are right, Mr Putin, according to the agreement signed on January 12, 2007, Belarus bought oil with a decreasing coefficient: 0.356 against the standard Russian export oil duty. On January 1, 2010, all decreasing coefficients expired.
Vladimir Putin: You mean that the agreement itself has expired?
Igor Sechin: Let's put it this way: the decreasing coefficients had a period of validity. It has expired.
Vladimir Putin: And what is next?
Igor Sechin: Taking into account our special attitude toward our Belarusian partners, during a meeting of the Supreme State Council in Moscow, we proposed an extension of privileged supply costs for Belarus in volumes needed for domestic use. These volumes are now being discussed by the Russian and Belarusian Energy Ministries. We are considering 6 million metric tons of oil.
Vladimir Putin: No duties?
Igor Sechin: No duties.
Vladimir Putin: Did you reach any agreements?
Igor Sechin: We introduced our proposals to our Belarusian partners. We are constantly in touch with them. Yesterday, I spoke to Belarusian First Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir Semashko.
We have not signed an agreement yet, but we provided Belarus with all the needed documents.
Vladimir Putin: What about supplies to Belarusian refineries and oil transit to our European customers?
Igor Sechin: We are preparing all these agreements, but they should not affect supplies to our customers. We are providing them fuel with no interruptions.
Yesterday, we started shipments to the Belarusian refineries through the main trunk line: about 100,000 metric tons of oil was shipped to the Novopolotsk refinery, and 78,000 metric tons to the Mozyr plant.
Vladimir Putin: I would ask you to continue negotiations. I hope you will sign the needed agreements as soon as possible because it is in our interest and in the interest of the current Russian legislation.
Igor Sechin: Yes, Mr Putin. We will do that.