Moscow: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is currently in Russia, has praised President Vladimir Putin for supplying fuel to India at a discounted rate and added this has helped New Delhi manage the fuel crisis. Notably, India, the world's third-biggest oil importer and consumer, has become the biggest buyer of seaborne Russian crude since the West halted purchases and imposed sanctions against Moscow in the aftermath of Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. India has also paid for Russian crude in rupees, dirhams and Chinese yuan.
"There was a great challenge of fuel before the world. At a time like this, with your cooperation, we were able to save the common public from difficulties pertaining to petrol-diesel. Not only this, the world will have to accept that the agreement regarding fuel between India and Russia, indirectly gave market stability to the world in a way..."
India-Russia oil trade
Russian oil made up about 32% of India's overall oil imports in February, compared with 28% the previous month, the data showed. India's Russian oil imports in recent months were hit by payment problems and tougher US sanctions, targeting entities and ships involved in the sale of Russian crude at above the price cap of $60 a barrel fixed by G7 nations.
The share of South American nations in India's total oil imports in February rose because of higher intake of Venezuelan oil by Indian refiners. In February, Venezuela was the fourth biggest supplier to India. In the same month, Indian refiners cut imports from Iraq by 32% from January to 861,200 bpd, while raising purchases from Saudi Arabia by 13.8% to 801,700 bpd, the data showed.
That led to OPEC's share in India's monthly imports rising to about 56% in February from 54% in January, it showed. For the first 11 months of financial year that ends in March 2024, the share of the producers' group fell to 49.8%, the data showed.
India inks 9 agreements with Russia
Notably, India and Russia inked at least nine Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) and agreements across several critical areas, including trade, climate change, and research. One of the key highlights was the signing of a program for bilateral cooperation in trade, economic, and investment spheres in the Russian Far East for the period from 2024 to 2029. This agreement aims to bolster trade and joint investment projects between India and Russia's Far East Region. Additionally, cooperation principles in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation were established to further enhance bilateral engagement.
To promote Russian investments in the Indian market, a Joint Investment Promotion Framework Agreement was signed between Invest India and JSC "Management Company of Russian Direct Investment Fund."
(With inputs from agencies)
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