India’s HPCL and BPCL companies have recommenced oil imports from Iran after a nearly three-year hiatus.
Following Japan’s Tonen General refinery, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) have also joined the club of Iranian crude oil customers given that the pressure of international sanctions has abated.
Accordingly, volume of Iran’s oil exports to India has experienced an upsurge after a three-year halt in oil sales to the Asian country.
On the basis of a report released by Iranian Ministry of Oil’s department for OPEC affairs and relations with energy organizations, Iran has exported a daily average of about 359 thousand oil barrels to India over the first seven months of 2016 which indicated a 67% leap as compared with the same period last year.
At the present time, Indian Oil Corporation Limited, Essar Oil and Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) remain as traditional customers of Iran’s crude while with addition of HPCL and BPCL, a total of five Indian refineries are now purchasing oil from Iran.
Since the beginning of the current Iranian calendar year (began March 20), the volume of oil exports from Iran to India has reached its highest level in seven years despite the fact that the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) canceled a number of oil sale incentives it has given to Hindi refiners.
Executive Director for International Affairs at National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) Seyed Mohsen Ghamsari had confirmed that the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) has stopped the sale of Iran's oil to India in rupee and would only receive euro payments from Indian refineries.”
Ghamsari also noted that “during sanction years, NIOC would undertake the cost of the insurance and transport of oil to India under CIF contracts while recently sealed deals have been in the form of Free On Board (FOB) which indicates that the buyers are required to pay the shipping costs.”
Indian Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan, in a recent interview with Indian media, has pointed to Iran’s refusal to undertake shipping costs inviting Indian refiners to take proper measures for importing Iranian crude.
Following the removal of certain restrictions against Iran’s oil exports leading to a total sales volume of about 2.5 million barrels per day, Iran has cancelled some of the selling points which were available to Indian refineries during sanction years.