India’s crude oil imports from Russia in November were the costliest in a year, government data show, reflecting lowering discounts on the fuel.
Refiners in the world’s third-largest oil consumer paid an average of $85.90 a barrel for shipments from its largest supplier, up 1.8 per cent compared with $84.46 in October.
Barrels from Iraq and Saudi Arabia, India’s second and third-largest suppliers, were $85.70 and $93.30 respectively in November, as benchmark prices declined.
Also read: OALP round 8: ONGC wins 7 blocks, RIL-BP and OIL bag one each
Less attractive discounts, rather than payment bottlenecks, compelled refiners to seek alternative crude oil sources, India’s Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Wednesday.
While India’s imports from Russia rose 6.2 per cent on month to 1.68 million barrels a day in November, those from Iraq grew by 21.4 per cent crossing the 1 million mark for the first time since February, according to data intelligence provider Kpler.
Shipments from Russia to India fell to 1.48 million barrels a day in December, according to Kpler, as six tankers carrying the Sokol grade oil from the country’s Far East could not deliver due to tightening sanctions.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.