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New Delhi: The government has trashed reports of pausing Russian oil purchases and said that Indian state refiners continue to source oil from suppliers from Moscow, sources said on Saturday. This comes after US President Donald Trump said he has heard that India is no longer buying oil from Russia. Trump recently announced a penalty on New Delhi for purchasing crude oil and defence equipment from Moscow.
The government sources said that Indian oil refiners supply decisions are guided by price, grade of crude, inventories, logistics and other economic factors.
"Russia, the world’s second-largest crude oil producer with an output of around 9.5 mb/d (nearly 10% of global demand), is also the second-largest exporter, shipping about 4.5 mb/d of crude and 2.3 mb/d of refined products. Fears of Russian oil being pushed out of the market and the consequent dislocation of traditional trade flows drove dated Brent crude prices to soar to US $137 per barrel in March 2022. In this challenging environment, India, as the world’s third-largest energy consumer with 85% crude oil import dependence, strategically adapted its sourcing to secure affordable energy while fully adhering to international norms," the sources added.
Good step if India paused Russian oil purchases: Trump
Trump earlier today said that India has reportedly halted Russian oil purchases and called it a "good step" if confirmed. "I understand that India is no longer going to be buying oil from Russia. That's what I heard, I don't know if that's right or not. That is a good step. We will see what happens....," Trump said while talking to reporters.
Several media reports claimed that Indian state refiners, including Indian Oil Corp, Bharat Petroleum Corp, Hindustan Petroleum Corp, and Mangalore Refinery Petrochemical Ltd, have paused Russian oil purchased in the past week following US' warning. India, which is the third-largest oil importer in the world, is one of the biggest buyers of seaborne Russian crude.
Trump earlier slammed India and Russia over their close ties and said the two countries can take their "dead economies down together". “I don’t care what India does with Russia. They can take their dead economies down together, for all I care. We have done very little business with India, their Tariffs are too high, among the highest in the World,” he said on Truth Social.
What MEA said on reports
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Friday said the Centre was not aware of any specific developments regarding Indian oil companies halting Russian oil purchases. It further underscored that India's energy purchases are guided by market dynamics and national interests.
"You are aware of our broad approach to energy sourcing requirements, that we look at what is available in the market and the prevailing global situation. We are not aware of any specifics," MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said a press briefing.
