No mechanisms yet to tax Gazprom superprofits - Kudrin

ST. PETERSBURG, June 10 (RIA Novosti) - Mechanisms have not yet been considered for taxing Russian energy giant Gazprom's superprofits, Russia's finance minister said Saturday.

"I proposed [at a government session June 7] to study this issue and prepare proposals," Alexei Kudrin told journalists.

Kudrin said on June 7 that Gazprom could bring in unplanned revenues of up to 400 billion rubles (about $15 billion) in 2006.

"I said that part of these funds could be taxed and then, in the form of taxes, be passed to the budget," Kudrin said.

A Kremlin source said Friday that Russia's government had refused to support an initiative from the finance minister to impose taxes on Gazprom's superprofits. The source said Gazprom was a state-owned company and it would be senseless to tax the company's profits and later return the funds to the company.