MOSCOW, June 27. /TASS/. The Russian government is preparing a report to President Vladimir Putin on updated oil price indicators used for taxing oil and gas companies, the Cabinet’s press office told TASS.

The head of state earlier instructed that the existing indicators be updated and new ones be formulated, specifically for making a more accurate determination of Russian oil prices when levying taxes on hydrocarbons enterprises.

"The report to the President of the Russian Federation is being prepared now," the press office said.

Prices published by Argus, an energy sector information agency, are currently used to determine the average domestic price of Russia’s benchmark Urals oil blend. Argus uses estimated Urals prices for the European ports of Augusta, Italy, and Rotterdam, although Russian oil is not currently traded in Europe. As a result of this method, however, the price quoted by Argus differs from the actual price, and the discount declared also turns out to be much higher than the actual one. This in turn has an impact on the taxation of hydrocarbons companies and, consequently, budget revenues.