22-09-08 While the Russian stock market was suspended, Russian government officials put together a plan that would help increase investment in the Russian oil sector. Kremlin economic advisor Arkady Dvorkovich said on September 19 said his country would propose more tax cuts for the oil industry this year and implement them in 2010.
The slashed oil export duty from October 1 will allow oil firms hit by a weaker crude price to save $ 5.5 bn and give a boost to their floundering stocks.

President Dmitry Medvedev met top officials on September 18 to discuss tax reform after a debate between a pro-growth camp, which wanted a major cut in value-added tax (VAT), and fiscal advisors, led by Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin. The two sides agreed to a compromise that postponed a decision on VAT until 2009 and tasked the government with looking instead at cutting taxes in the oil sector.
"In effect... a decision was made on lowering the tax burden for the oil sector," Dvorkovich told. He said the proposal would be drawn up this year and applied from 2010.

Dvorkovich said discussions were continuing over whether Russia would further cut oil export duty or reduce the mineral extraction tax, which together provide the same amount of budget revenues as the VAT.
"With the economy being in trouble, they are encouraging companies so they are reducing the export tax," Manouchehr Takin, analyst with the Centre for Global Energy Studies in London, told.

Meanwhile, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin met leaders of major foreign companies on September 18 including, Royal Dutch Shell, ConocoPhillips, Total, Chevron, and BP, to assure them about investing in Russia.
"We shall consider further tax cuts for the oil and gas sector, and next steps will be made already in 2010," Putin said.