Media halts Russian oil shipments after US sanctions, Indian refiner says Reuters

By Nidhi Verma

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – New U.S. sanctions on Russian producers, tankers and insurers that supply Russian oil to middlemen will not provide cargo, according to the finance chief of an Indian refiner. Bharat Petroleum (NSE:)

The company and other state refiners – Indian Oil Corporation, BPCL; Hindustan Petroleum (NSE: ) and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals buy Russian oil in the spot market, forcing them to look for alternatives, especially from traders and delays.

“We have not received any new offers for the March (delivery) window. Traders are asking us to wait. We are waiting for offers,” Vetsa Ramakrishna Gupta told Reuters on Wednesday.

“We are not expecting the same volume of cargo that we get in December and January,” Gupta said.

Dealers start offering shipments on the 15th of every month for pickup the following month.

On average, the refinery receives 16-17 Russian oil shipments per month, which covers 35% of demand. Like other Indian refineries, it saw a reduction in January, three shipments short, and now faces further supply cuts in March.

To make up for the shortfall, Indian refiners have floated tenders for oil revenues and are buying Murban grades like Abu Dhabi.

BPCL also floated an annual tender seeking 1 million barrels of murban every month for a year.

Gupta said his company could float a short-term tender in March as higher premiums on Middle East spot oil made it more attractive.

After US President Donald Trump announced that his administration wants to increase US oil and gas production, India is expected to increase its purchases of US oil and gas.