Tariffs charged for electricity and freight shipping in Russia
could rise higher than current government forecasts for this year
and next, business daily Vedomosti reports Thursday.
The Ministry of Economic Development on Wednesday confirmed a
report by news agency Interfax that electricity fees could increase
by 20.2% this year, not 16% as now estimated, and by 17% in 2011,
rather than the current 14% projection. Fees for rail freight could
go up by as much as 14% this year, not the estimated 9.2%.
The ministry stressed that while the higher rates will be
considered, they have yet to be discussed by the government.
A ministry source had told Interfax that the cargo-fee proposal
came from Russian Railways, the state-owned company that runs the
world's biggest rail network.
Newspaper website: www.vedomosti.ru
-Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2900