India can arrange alternative supplies if Russian oil exports are sanctioned, petroleum minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Thursday in what is seen as the first official reaction to the US and EU threat of secondary sanctions for buying those barrels.
“I don’t feel any pressure in my mind (about sanctions on Russian oil). And I don’t think my boss’s (PM’s) mind is wired to feel any pressure. That’s where I draw my strength (from). India has diversified the sources (of oil). I am not worried at all. If something happens, we will deal with it. There is sufficient supply available,” Puri said at an industry event.
Separately, the ministry of external affairs said the govt’s overriding priority was to secure the energy needs of its people, while also cautioning against any double standards on the issue.
The comments, in response to media queries, followed NATO chief Mark Rutte’s threat, echoing the US, that countries like India, China and Brazil would take a battering for buying Russian exports.
“Let me reiterate, and I have said this in the past as well. Securing energy needs of our people is understandably an overriding priority for us,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.
“In this endeavour, we are guided by what is there on offer in the markets, as also by the prevailing global circumstances. We would particularly caution against any double standards on the matter,” he added. India has in the past too accused the West of having double standards on the issue, saying that European countries have themselves benefited from importing Russian energy for prolonged periods.
Puri said India has built up “navigational resilience” by expanding the sourcing of oil from 40 countries against 27 countries earlier. “India has been clear that it will buy oil from wherever it has to. The PM’s commitment, in the final analysis, is to the Indian consumer,” he said.
In addition, Puri said, more oil was coming into the global market from countries such as Brazil, Guyana and Canada that are not members of the OPEC+ grouping. “If a major source goes off the market, you diversify. The current debate in the oil market is whether prices will be in the range of $65-70 or $60-65 (per barrel),” he said. On purchase of Russian oil by Indian refiners, Puri argued that those barrels were currently subjected to a price cap of $60 and “not sanctioned”.
