Crude Suppliers to India are Price Dependent: Oil Minister

India’s source of crude supplies is price dependent, and they will use growing demand to secure favourable deals according to the oil minister Hardeep Singh Puri.

• Russia has been India’s top supplier since June as the India has increased purchases of discounted Russian crude. Imports of Russian oil by India hit a record in January and are expected to rise further in Feb.
• “It’s a question of price,” Puri said on Monday adding that refiners “will buy from wherever they source it most economically.”
• Increasing domestic oil demand gives opportunities to add more supply from nations including the US and OPEC. India has seen its number of oil suppliers rise from 27 to 39 in recent years. India’s oil demand could rise to between 6.5m - 7mbpd from the current level around 5mbpd according to Puri.

• They will aim to lift refining capacity from 250m tons to 450m tons a year by the end of decade according to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.