India resumes buying Russian oil — Reuters
Photo: India has resumed purchasing Russian oil (Getty Images)
India's largest oil company, Indian Oil Corp (IOC), is resuming purchases of Russian oil. The company has placed orders with suppliers that are not subject to sanctions, Reuters reports.
According to Reuters, citing sources in the trade sector, Indian Oil Corp has purchased five batches for delivery in December from suppliers that are not subject to US sanctions against Russia.
This amounts to 3.5 million barrels of ESPO crude oil. This means that IOC continues to make purchases despite increased pressure from Washington to stop importing Russian oil.
Earlier, the company's CFO, Anuj Jain, said that the company would buy oil from Russia if the supplies did not violate international sanctions.
US sanctions against Russia
On October 22, the US imposed new sanctions against Russia, explaining the move by Russia's lack of serious interest in the peace process to end the war in Ukraine.
The restrictions apply to the two largest Russian oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil, as well as their subsidiaries in Russia. Violations are subject to civil and criminal penalties for US citizens and foreigners.
The media reported that Indian oil refineries had not placed any new orders for Russian oil since the US sanctions were imposed. They were waiting for clarification from the government and suppliers.
State-owned refineries in India were looking into whether they could continue to accept some Russian oil shipments instead of the energy giants against which the US had imposed sanctions.
