The Russian government should adjust its minerals extraction tax rather than excise duties to stabilize domestic fuel prices and avoid gasoline shortages, Kremlin aide Arkady Dvorkovich said on Monday.
"I believe it would be more logical to adjust the subsoil tax formula rather than excise duties," Dvorkovich said.
Last week Russia's competition watchdog proposed reducing excise duties on gasoline, if world oil prices rise above $90 per barrel, in a bid to fight fuel price hikes on the domestic market.
The government boosted the gasoline export tariff to a nearly prohibitive 44 percent from May 1 to fight local shortages and fuel price hikes which started in mid-April in some regions.
Russian oil companies prefer to sell gasoline abroad where prices are higher than in Russia.
MOSCOW, May 23 (RIA Novosti)
