MOSCOW, April 3 (Reuters) - Russia's economy ministry has raised its 2012 average oil price forecast to $115 per barrel from a previous estimate of $100 per barrel, Economy Minister Elvira Nabiullina said on Tuesday. Nabiullina said that Urals blend URL-E crude price forecasts for the following two years have been left unchanged at $97 and $101 respectively, adding that the ministry expects oil prices to decline from current levels. The ministry had initially envisaged a budget deficit of 1.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2012, while analysts say that Russia could balance the budget this year with an average oil price of around $118-$120 per barrel. Prices for Urals last stood at $121.85 per barrel. Oil prices are crucial to whether Russia can balance its budget in coming years given spending commitments made by Vladimir Putin in the run up to his victory in presidential elections last month. Nabiullina also said that Russia's oil output in the next 20 years will remain at around 2011 levels, and the country's economic growth potential based on increasing oil production is already depleted. (Reporting by Douglas Busvine; Writing by Andrey Ostroukh; Editing by Maria Kiselyova)

Source