Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs complain of fines for poor quality gasoline

As the Kommersant has got to know, big oil companies try to stop the introduction of turnover-based fines for selling poor quality fuel. The bill, prepared by the Federal Agency on Technical Regulating and Metrology, has already been approved by the State Commission in December, but now the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs asks the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Energy for additional discussions. In fact, the bill is already locked as the Economy Ministry sent a negative conclusion on the document. The Ministry of Industry stated to the Kommersant that it was ready for dialogue.

The letter of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs’ president Alexander Shokhin to the heads of the Ministry of Energy and Industry and Trade Denis Manturov and Alexander Novak has been brought to the Kommersant’s attention. Mr. Shokhin asks not to introduce the turnover-based fines for the production and sale of low-quality fuel. Such amendments, prepared by the Federal Agency on Technical Regulating and Metrology (subordinated to the Ministry of Industry) were approved by the State Commission on Combating Counterfeiting in December last year. But as it is believed in the Union, filling stations of major oil companies may be primarily adversely affected by the penalties, even though a small number of violations falls on them. Mr. Shokhin refers to the results of the General Prosecutor's Office’s audit in 2015, according to which the main trafficking of counterfeit fuel - 6-10 million tons per year – takes place at independent tank farms, filling stations and mini-refineries, non-owned by the vertically integrated companies. The Union believes the fine of 10-15% of the total annual revenue, and at repeated infringement – stop of a refinery or filling station for 90 days, is a too harsh measure.