Russian oil and gas revenues, the backbone of the state coffers, rose 22.5% in February but still fell 46.4% from February 2022, in keeping with data from the Ministry of Finance on Friday.
Tax and customs revenues from oil and gas sales fell to their lowest level since August 2020 in January.
Moscow relies on energy revenues – about 11.6 trillion rubles ($154 billion) last 12 months – to finance government spending and has been forced to sell foreign exchange reserves to cover a deficit stretched by the fee of a military operation in Ukraine.
Budget revenues from oil and gas sales reached 521.2 billion rubles ($6.9 billion) last month, in comparison with 425.5 billion rubles in January and 971.7 billion rubles in February 2022.
On Wednesday, the ministry quoted a nominal price of $49.56 a barrel of Russian Urals crude in February – barely higher than January’s $49.48 but well below the February 2022 price of $77.16.
![The employee works in the Russian Gazprom.](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/NYPICHPDPICT000002663260.jpg?w=1024)
February revenues were boosted by a rise in the minerals extraction tax (MET) on oil, up 126.6 billion rubles ($1.68 billion) since January, and natural gas MET, up 76.2 billion billion rubles.
Russia’s 2023 budget projects a deficit of two% of GDP, and any larger shortfall would require a mix of upper foreign exchange sales, lower spending, more loans or tax increases.