The Ministry of Finance has prepared a bill for submission to the State Duma that will allow the continued use of quotations from the international agency Argus for calculating oil taxes. RBC has reviewed a copy of the document. The bill permits authorities to utilize these indices until September 1, 2028. Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin has instructed the Ministry to present the amendments for consideration by the State Duma. A source close to the government confirmed to RBC that the bill has been approved by the legislative committee within the government. According to the current law, from March 1, 2026, foreign companies and Russian legal entities with more than 20% foreign ownership are prohibited from exploring commodity markets in Russia. The new amendments would allow for exceptions for foreign organizations whose data is utilized in tax legislation. The amendments are proposed to be applied to legal relations arising from March 1. The key beneficiary of these changes remains Argus, registered in the UK. The proposal to maintain the agency's quotations for the calculation of oil taxes came from the Ministry of Finance, as reported by Deputy Finance Minister Alexey Sazanov on March 19 of this year. In the fall of 2025, Argus notified the ministry about risks associated with reducing its operations in Russia and requested modifications to the regulations. The agency's quotations are used by the Ministry of Finance for calculating mineral extraction taxes and the fuel damper (a budget compensation for the difference between export and domestic prices). The Ministry of Economic Development also uses this data when forming export duties. ### Import Substitution of Indicators It was planned that starting in 2024, Russia would transition to its own index for calculating oil taxes. Amendments to the Tax Code anticipated the use of quotations based on the price of oil on over-the-counter transactions at the St. Petersburg Exchange. However, the Ministry of Finance had questions regarding its representativeness and postponed the transition to exchange indices until 2025. The St. Petersburg Exchange has been promoting the idea of an alternative to global price indicators for calculating taxes in the oil sector for several years. In January 2025, a National Exchange Price Agency (NEPA) was established based on the exchange. It formulates price indices and indicators based on data derived from exchange trading and the registration of over-the-counter transactions, as well as information provided by market participants. At that time, the exchange proposed using its indices for calculating oil taxes but was met with rejection from the Ministry of Finance. Currently, the St. Petersburg Exchange is not engaging in any discussions with the government or the Ministry of Finance regarding the use of exchange price data for taxation purposes, as reported by a representative of the trading platform to RBC. In the conclusion of the bill provided by the Institute for Legislative and Comparative Law under the government, the necessity for amendments is justified by the reduction of risks to budget revenues. It is noted that the changes are specific in nature and ensure the continuity of administrative procedures for calculating export duties and tax bases, while also supporting regulatory predictability for all market participants by maintaining current payment calculation methodologies. RBC has sent inquiries to Argus, the government press service, and the Ministry of Finance. ### Why Argus Indices Are Important to the Ministry of Finance The Ministry of Finance faces the challenge of minimizing the risks of losses in oil and gas revenues when calculating prices. As noted by the CEO of the Open Oil Market, Sergei Tereshkin, the Argus methodology is the most recognized in the industry and, crucially for the Ministry of Finance, is neutral in terms of the influence of oil producers, traders, and other market participants. Furthermore, Argus data is based on a large volume of transactions in the spot market, which allows it to accurately reflect the market situation. Regarding the Urals futures contract at the St. Petersburg Exchange, Tereshkin adds that the liquidity of trading in this instrument is insufficient for it to be perceived as a reliable source of market data. In the absence of the proposed amendments, the Ministry of Economic Development will not have official data for calculating payments to the budget, explained Vladimir Grudzev, Chairman of the Russian Lawyers Association. “The exception the legislator is making concerning the start of the prohibition gives government authorities time to prepare national commodity market monitoring indicators. It is expected that after September 1, 2028, government bodies will be able to utilize studies conducted without the participation of foreign organizations,” he stated. Since 2023, the Price Indices Center (PIC) has also been operating in Russia. It publishes indices based on similar specifications used in Russian legislation for taxes, as reported by PIC CEO Natalia Porokhova. The Center operates in accordance with the practices of international agencies and is undergoing accreditation with the Bank of Russia. The methodologies of the PIC have been reviewed by federal government bodies in State Duma committees. According to Porokhova, a major obstacle to replacing the quotations of the British agency is the legislative norms that have solidified its monopoly in Russia. “Russia has already undergone a process of import substitution in similar sectors, where the inertia of the global payment, rating, and reinsurance infrastructure complicates the development of national players. Clearly, changes will occur here, especially since the disintegration of the system of global price benchmarks has been happening since 2022 and particularly accelerated in the last month,” she adds. Moreover, there are challenges in forming the main price benchmark for Asia—Dubai. The price of Urals oil is becoming increasingly independent of Brent, as it is being supplied to Asian markets. This will inevitably lead to changes in oil price benchmarks, and it is important not to maintain inertia in the legislative framework of Russia, Porokhova asserts. She emphasizes that the Argus agency itself emerged during the oil shocks of the 1970s, a time when oil trading underwent radical changes. The oil shocks of 2026 are also transforming trade and providing Russia the opportunity to create its own price benchmarks. Source: RBC