New Delhi: The largest oil firm of India, the Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) has declared to import 3 million barrels of crude oil. According to sources, it is a company to company contracted deal. The deal follows a high-level contact established between India and the Russian Federation earlier this week.
While the sanctions by Joe Biden on Russian oil imports are announced in response to the attack initiated by Moscow, there are no restrictions on Indian oil companies for buying crude oil from Russian oil companies.
Fighting heavy sanctions, Putin has begun offering oil and other commodities at discounted prices to India and several large importers. According to sources, several more companies are in the pipeline to tie up with Russian oil companies for import.
This contract comes in the backdrop of the latest surge with the benchmark Brent crude touching multi-year highs of near $140 a barrel at one point since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Meanwhile, the US spoks at a daily press briefing on Friday, responding to the question on the ‘largest democracy’ India procuring oil from Moscow said, “every country has not made that decision. And we recognise that and they have different economic reasoning as to why different countries do including some in Europe”.
India, which imports 85 per cent of its oil needs, is looking to cut spiralling energy bill through purchases from anywhere it can get at cheaper rates.
Because of the impact of soaring oil prices on the economy, India’s Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday told Rajya Sabha that “discussions are underway” for buying oil from Russia, but “there are several issues to be gone into like how much oil is available”, as well as payment for it and transportation.