India eyes better oil deals as Russian imports slow, minister says

India can leverage its growing energy demand to negotiate better oil and gas supply deals, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Friday, as its refiners continue seeking alternatives to Russian oil.

India became the top buyer of discounted Russian seaborne crude after Moscow’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, but challenges posed by Western sanctions eventually prompted Indian refiners to increase imports from other sources.

Indian officials have been careful to avoid directly referencing Russian oil imports, but Puri said supplies from “one source” that had surged after February 2022, were now easing.

Data obtained from trade sources showed India’s Russian oil imports fell to their lowest  level in two years in December, lifting OPEC’s share of imports to an 11-month high.

India’s rising oil demand gives it “a little bit of positioning inside the world” to negotiate better deals, Puri said.

The world’s third-largest oil importer and consumer should have no trouble covering its needs given ample global supplies and rising output in countries such as Brazil, Guyana, Suriname and the United States.

Indian refiners have been buying more oil from Middle Eastern, African and South American countries to make up for a drop in Russian oil imports, which is expected to help India negotiate a tariff deal with Washington.

Puri said Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd had doubled the size of its annual contract with Brazil’s Petrobras.

Indian Oil Corp , the country’s top refiner, has bought 7 million barrels of oil, including from Brazil’s Petrobras, for March loading to replace Russian oil, trade sources said.

IOC last month bought its first Colombian oil and for the first time bought Ecuadorean Oriente crude.