India says it will continue to buy oil from Russia despite war

Indian Oil and Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri announced that his country will continue to buy Russian oil. He claimed it was India’s duty to ensure energy security, despite tensions associated with the war against Ukraine. The statements were made after the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) members announced that they were planning to reduce their production.

with incoming information Come Bastin, RFI correspondent in India

When asked about the issue by journalists during his visit to Washington, Hardeep Singh Puri was categorically: “Has anyone asked us to stop buying Russian oil? No. And we will not stop buying,” said the Indian Oil and Gas Minister. . . .

The statements came just after Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said he refused to let the war in Ukraine affect the people of India.

Hardeep Singh Puri also reminded that his country’s oil imports are much lower than Western consumption. Noting that only 0.2 percent of the oil consumed in India comes from Russia, the minister compared, “Europe buys in an afternoon, we buy it in a quarter.”

The Indian Oil and Gas Minister also reacted to the decision of the 13 members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) to reduce their daily production by two million barrels. Singh Puri was confident in India’s ability to contain oil price inflation.

The disclosures are a way to reassure a population that has been paying around 80 rupees (equivalent to 5 R$) for a liter of oil for months, a very high price for the standard of living in India.

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In 2020, OPEC members agreed to cut production to avoid flooding a market that could not meet supply due to restrictions and constraints associated with the Covid-19 pandemic. The strategy worked, and the rapidly falling prices rose again thanks to this policy.

Last year, in the context of a return to normalcy, OPEC+ agreed to maintain increased production. However, in the face of fears of an imminent recession, the alliance decided to reduce production volumes again in early September.

When asked about the possible impact of the war in Russia on oil production decisions, Emiratis Energy Minister Souhail ben Mohammed Al-Mazrouei said that it is a “technical organization” that does not stir up political issues.