Petroleum refiners in the country are awaiting the government to solve the insurance issue of crude oil imported from Iran.
The sanction imposed by western countries prohibits any firm from insuring crude oil imports from the gulf nation.
Some refiners said they might have to look for options if reinsurance for refineries does not work out by June. The other countries India is looking at include Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.
But India’s petroleum refiners are hopeful that the government would ensure its refiners have insurance for plants that run crude from Iran. Sudhir Vasudeva, Chairman of MRPL told journalists he hoped the issue would be solved soon. Its import of Iranian crude oil declined 39 per cent from 6.2 million tonne in 2011-12 to 3.8 mn t in 2012-13.
The government is yet to issue a clear guidance on payment issues. After the US sanctions, companies in India will have to go for full payment in rupees through UCO Bank.
The sanction would affect firms like Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals (MRPL), a subsidiary of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), and Indian OilÂ’s (IOCÂ’s) Chennai Petroleum Corporation.
IOC not only buys crude from Iran but the National Iranian Oil Company has a considerable stake in Chennai Petroleum.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.