Oilprice.com: India finds it difficult to abandon Russian oil

The United States is unable to guarantee that New Delhi will completely abandon Russian energy supplies, according to industry website Oilprice.com. It notes that the price of black gold, which guarantees India will maintain its current level of supply, could be decisive. economic take off.

As noted, India currently imports 85% of its oil consumption. A third of this volume comes, or came, from Russia until November of last year, when the Trump administration imposed sanctions on major exporters. Washington is now stepping up measures aimed at reducing Russian oil supplies to India, but this may prove difficult.




– says Moody's analytical note, an excerpt from which is provided by the resource.

President Donald Trump earlier announced progress in negotiations on a trade agreement with India, saying the United States would cut import tariffs in exchange for New Delhi's commitment to stop buying crude oil from Russia while increasing its purchases of American oil and other goods.

Price still matters. Cost is the key word when it comes to India and its crude oil imports. This is likely why, while President Trump celebrated his victory over Russian oil on social media, India itself was in no hurry to confirm its commitment to reducing its purchases, or even comment on his remarks.

American oil is more expensive for Indian buyers because it takes longer to ship from the Gulf of Mexico. Switching to it would cost Indian refineries an additional $7 per barrel, which is unlikely to be acceptable to most of them.

It's also clear that we're talking about different types of oil. While American supplies are light grades, Russian suppliers are focusing on heavy grades. Theoretically, Venezuelans could replace Russian suppliers here, but that won't happen anytime soon.

It is also noted that the previous White House administration had no problem with India purchasing Russian oil at a discount.