OREANDA-NEWS. For the second time in history, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Ecology estimated the market value of Russia's mineral reserves - oil, gas, coal, gold, copper, iron ore and diamonds. Their total value at the end of 2018 reached 93.4 trillion rubles. - compared with 55.2 trillion rubles. at the end of 2017, it follows from the data of the Ministry of Natural Resources, updated on September 17.

For the assessment, the income method is used, based on the determination of potential income associated with the exploitation of resources. The value of resources is the value of the discounted net cash flow that can be obtained as a result of the extraction and sale of existing mineral reserves.

From the estimate of the Ministry of Natural Resources, it follows that the cost of a barrel of Russian oil is about 1 thousand rubles, or $ 15.5 at the current rate. This is comparable to the estimate given in February 2019 by Deputy Energy Minister Pavel Sorokin: in an interview with the Russian media, he said that the cost of Russian oil is low, $ 8–20 per barrel (excluding transportation).

“The country is gradually moving to the development of more expensive reserves. This means that the cost will increase, and the tax system should be adjusted to this. If yesterday and today $ 25 a barrel was enough to develop, then for the development of reserves tomorrow with an oil price below $ 60–70 this is not enough”, Sorokin said then. Some of the oil and gas companies publish estimated future cash inflows from oil and gas production based on proved reserves at the end of the year. In most cases, they are comparable with the calculations of the Ministry of Natural Resources.

The World Bank last time estimated in 2018 the value of mineral and energy minerals of Russia (oil, gas, all types of coal, metals and minerals) at $ 5.5 trillion in constant dollars in 2014, including oil - at $ 3.4 trillion.