New Delhi: India is exploring options to buy Russian crude oilOfficials said on Tuesday that Ukraine has registered a drop in prices in view of the global response to the conflict.
New Delhi has historic diplomatic and defense ties with Moscow, hosted a rare foreign visit by President Vladimir Putin late last year, and called for an end to violence in Ukraine, but has fallen short of condemning the invasion. .
Its government is looking to cut a spiraling energy bill after rising oil prices in the wake of the conflict, as well as the Washington embargo prompting other potential buyers to stay away Russian oil,
Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said the government was in talks “at the appropriate level of the Russian Federation” regarding the purchase.
“Discussions are going on at present. There are many issues to be considered like how much oil is available,” he told Parliament.
Puri said the government is looking at issues related to insurance, freight and payment of crude oil.
Many countries, including European countries, are heavily dependent on fuel from Russia, which is the world’s second largest crude exporter after Saudi Arabia.
India – the world’s third largest crude oil importer – currently buys only about 3 percent of its supply from Russia, according to government data.
According to local media reports, New Delhi is also considering setting up a rupee-ruble trading mechanism for payment of oil and other goods.
Crude oil prices fell to around $100 a barrel on Tuesday, adding to the downside in markets after hitting a nearly 14-year high last week.
The Ukraine crisis has left India facing a diplomatic dilemma after years of close ties with Russia, which began during the Cold War, with Moscow still its biggest arms supplier.
Late last year it began taking deliveries of the S-400 missile defense system from Russia, which the US agreed to buy in 2018 for more than $5 billion, despite the threat of sanctions.
At the same time, it needs Western support to contend with its increasingly assertive neighbor, China, in the wake of increasingly escalating territorial disputes in a deadly border conflict in 2020.
New Delhi has historic diplomatic and defense ties with Moscow, hosted a rare foreign visit by President Vladimir Putin late last year, and called for an end to violence in Ukraine, but has fallen short of condemning the invasion. .
Its government is looking to cut a spiraling energy bill after rising oil prices in the wake of the conflict, as well as the Washington embargo prompting other potential buyers to stay away Russian oil,
Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said the government was in talks “at the appropriate level of the Russian Federation” regarding the purchase.
“Discussions are going on at present. There are many issues to be considered like how much oil is available,” he told Parliament.
Puri said the government is looking at issues related to insurance, freight and payment of crude oil.
Many countries, including European countries, are heavily dependent on fuel from Russia, which is the world’s second largest crude exporter after Saudi Arabia.
India – the world’s third largest crude oil importer – currently buys only about 3 percent of its supply from Russia, according to government data.
According to local media reports, New Delhi is also considering setting up a rupee-ruble trading mechanism for payment of oil and other goods.
Crude oil prices fell to around $100 a barrel on Tuesday, adding to the downside in markets after hitting a nearly 14-year high last week.
The Ukraine crisis has left India facing a diplomatic dilemma after years of close ties with Russia, which began during the Cold War, with Moscow still its biggest arms supplier.
Late last year it began taking deliveries of the S-400 missile defense system from Russia, which the US agreed to buy in 2018 for more than $5 billion, despite the threat of sanctions.
At the same time, it needs Western support to contend with its increasingly assertive neighbor, China, in the wake of increasingly escalating territorial disputes in a deadly border conflict in 2020.