Aliaksandr Barouski, head of the state-owned concern Belnaftahim, was officially charged with corruption today. The investigation is under way, and the exact article of the criminal code, which Aliaksandr Barouski had allegedly broken, has not yet been made public.
Aliaksandr Barouski was arrested on May, 29. Until today, he was suspected of abusing the authority he had as head of “Belnaftahim” and – from now on this is what he is actually charged with.
In April Belnaftahim was criticized by Siarhej Sidorski, Prime Minister of Belarus. He accused Belnaftahim of not being able to provide enough oil supply from Russia to the Belarusian refineries. Belnaftahim unites about 50 firms which deal with refining oil and producing all kind of goods from it. Together, they constitute 19% of the total volume of industrial production in Belarus, and employ 120.000 people. 70% of Belnaftahim’s production is exported.
It seems that Belnaftahim, and personally its director, will be made a scapegoat for the economic problems the country experiences as a result of the gas and oil conflict with Kremlin.
