MOSCOW, Nov. 10 (UPI) -- Moscow may convert its crude export duties from a two-month mechanism to a one-month mechanism to increase financial maneuvering, officials said Monday.
The Platts news agency, citing Russian media reports, said Moscow may review its crude export duties starting in December as the world financial crisis spills over into the Russian economy.
"Starting from December, the duty may change every month based on (the average) oil price monitoring from the middle of the previous month to the middle of the current month," said Russian Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin.
Moscow slashed export duties on crude by nearly 24 percent in September in an effort to pare losses from the declining price of oil. Crude was trading around $61 per barrel Monday, down from July highs of nearly $148.
Russian energy giants Gazprom, LUKoil and others lobbied the central government for massive loans to refinance their foreign debts and fund infrastructure projects amid a global economic downturn.
Iran said Monday the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries may meet earlier than its planned Dec. 17 meeting to discuss production quotas, should oil prices continue to slide.
