Skip to content
Edit post

Parliament proposes new duty on energy, fuel imports from Russia

by Dylan Carter December 29, 2021 2:03 PM 2 min read
Following the end of a ban on Russian electricity imports on Nov. 1, 2021 the Verkhovna Rada is considering a proposal to impose a 4-5% special duty on fuel and energy from Russia. (Pexels)
This audio is created with AI assistance

Support independent journalism in Ukraine. Join us in this fight.

Become a member Support us just once

The parliamentary committee on energy, housing, and communal services proposed the introduction of a 4-5% duty on fuel and energy imports from Russia on Dec. 28, according to news outlet Ekonomichna Pravda.

Committee chair Andriy Gerus was quoted as saying that Ukraine’s parliament is considering raising the duty on imports of both fuel and energy. This includes diesel, gasoline, LPG (liquefied petroleum gas), and electricity, as well as thermal, lean, and anthracite coal.

Duties already exist on Russian energy, notably a 4% tax on diesel, 3% on LPG, and 65% on thermal coal, however, these are scheduled to end on Dec. 31.

The import of electricity from Russia and Belarus imposed in May expired on Nov. 1, after which Ukraine restarted imports from Belarus, but not Russia.

Energy imports from Russia have been a controversial issue since the start of Russia’s war in the Donbas and Crimea in 2014. Reliance on Russian energy is now viewed by many in Ukraine as a threat to national security.

A post on the official website of the Cabinet of Ministers states that the government is undertaking “a brand new approach to energy security under the pressure of economic aggression, continuous blackmailing from Russian state-run corporations, and the threat of energy supply disruption from Russia.”

According to Gerus, the proposed tax would raise funds for the state budget and the protection of Ukraine against Russian aggression.

The proposal is likely to affect Ukraine’s imports of LPG and diesel. The country remains heavily dependent on Russian diesel imports, importing over 1.5 million tons of fuel from its neighbor in 2021.

In 2019-2021, the Ukrainian government raised more than Hr 1.5 billion ($55 million) in duties on LPG and diesel originating from Russia.

However, the committee's proposal looks unlikely to have any practical application in the context of Russia’s current coal blackmail of Ukraine.

Until recently, Ukraine was reliant on Russia for most of its energy needs. In 2020, 70% of Ukraine's coal imports came from Russia, according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

This came to an abrupt halt on Nov. 1, when Russia halted exports of thermal coal to Ukraine. Since then, no shipments of coal used for producing electricity have arrived.

This has proved costly to Ukraine. Russia has been driving up the cost of natural gas by cutting its use of Ukraine’s gas transit infrastructure. With Russian coal imports suspended, the Ukrainian government was forced to buy gas at expensive market rates for the winter heating season.

Support independent journalism in Ukraine. Join us in this fight.
Freedom can be costly. Both Ukraine and its journalists are paying a high price for their independence. Support independent journalism in its darkest hour. Support us for as little as $1, and it only takes a minute.
visa masterCard americanExpress

News Feed

11:16 AM

Kuleba begins first trip to India.

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said he was in the Indian capital New Delhi at the invitation of Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, and that the two would "pay specific attention to the peace formula" in their talks.
Ukraine Daily
News from Ukraine in your inbox
Ukraine news
Please, enter correct email address
5:30 AM

Ukrainian POWs faced conditional release from Hungary.

Two Ukrainian prisoners of war, part of a group of 11 handed over to Hungary by Russia in June 2023, said in an interview to Deutsche Welle, that Hungarian representatives imposed conditions preventing their return to Ukraine until the war's end.
3:16 AM

Estonian police arrest citizen who reported for Russian state media.

Estonian police have arrested Svetlana Burceva, an Estonian citizen, for allegedly violating international sanctions having served as a reporter for Russian state sponsored Balt News - an arm of the Kremlin-run Russia Today (RT) news outlet, Estonian publication Eesti Ekspress reported on March 27.
MORE NEWS

Editors' Picks

Enter your email to subscribe
Please, enter correct email address
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Successfuly subscribed
Thank you for signing up for this newsletter. We’ve sent you a confirmation email.