Putin instructed to consider introducing price regulation for heating oil

The President instructed the government to consider introducing price regulation for fuel oil supplied for the heating season. About it it says in the list of instructions following the August meeting with members of the Cabinet.

As part of one of the instructions, the government must provide financing for the costs of holding the heating season in the Murmansk region and other regions of the Arctic zone, considering the issue of “introducing price regulation for fuel oil supplied for the heating season.”

The Cabinet of Ministers also needs to consider the issue of compensating regions for costs associated with rising prices for fuel oil supplied for heat supply purposes. The government must submit reports on these issues by October 15, 2023 and February 1, 2024.

In September, at a meeting with the president, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, who oversees the fuel and energy complex toldthat the Cabinet of Ministers is exploring the possibility of subsidizing the cost of fuel oil supplied to certain regions with a high share of its use in the energy sector. First of all, we are talking about the Murmansk region and the Kamchatka region. After the increase in exchange prices, the cost of fuel oil there exceeded the average level of last year. On September 22, Novak held a meeting with representatives of oil companies. The meeting participants noted the absence of fuel shortages in the wholesale and retail segments, as well as its sufficient reserves at oil refineries (refineries), oil depots and in Transneft reservoirs.

On September 21, the government introduced a temporary ban on the export of gasoline and diesel to combat gray fuel exports and to provide the domestic market with petroleum products. This led to an increase in reserves by 430,000 tons, as well as to the stabilization of exchange prices for fuel, which was also transmitted to the small wholesale segment, Novak said.

The cost of gasoline and diesel fuel at Russian gas stations for the week from September 25 to October 1 decreased for the first time since the spring of this year, Vedomosti wrote earlier on October 5. Gasoline of all grades fell in price for the first time since March 6, and diesel – since May 10. According to Rosstat, a liter of AI-92 gasoline fell in price in the country over the week by 0.4% to 51.41 rubles, AI-95 – by 0.5% to 56.16 rubles. The price of diesel fuel decreased by only 0.1% to 64.9 rubles/liter.