Indian Oil ditches U.S. crude, shifts to Nigerian and Middle Eastern supplies amid tariff tensions: Report
New Delhi: State-run Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has opted against buying U.S. crude in its latest tender, instead sourcing 2 million barrels from West Africa and another 1 million barrels from the Middle East.
According to traders, the refiner purchased one million barrels each of Nigeria’s Agbami and Usan grades from TotalEnergies, along with an additional million barrels of Abu Dhabi’s Das crude from Shell, Reuters reported.
The Nigerian cargoes were acquired on a free-on-board basis, while the Das consignment was secured on a delivered basis, scheduled to reach Indian ports in late October or early November, it added.
In its previous tender just a week ago, IOC had picked up 5 million barrels of U.S. West Texas Intermediate.
Recently, Indian refiners increased U.S. crude imports due to a favourable arbitrage window, a move that also helped narrow India’s ballooning trade surplus with Washington. However, the latest tender reflects a shift.
Despite a front-month Brent-WTI spread of around $4 a barrel, the landed cost of U.S. crude proved higher than alternative grades.
The recalibration comes as U.S. tariffs on Indian exports have been doubled to 50%, officially linked to New Delhi’s continued imports of discounted Russian oil.
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