Indian Oil Corporation Buys Johan Sverdrup Crude From Norway: Sources

The move follows the Indian government's call to cut dependence on crude from the Middle East in an escalating stand-off between India and Saudi Arabia

State-run refiner Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has made its first purchase of Norway's Johan Sverdrup crude, buying four million barrels via a tender as it speeds up diversification of crude imports, two trade sources told Reuters on Monday. IOC will take delivery of two million barrels of the North Sea crude in each of May and June, one of the sources said. Further details on the trades were not yet clear. The move follows the Indian government's call to cut dependence on crude from the Middle East in an escalating stand-off between India, the world's third-largest crude importer, and Saudi Arabia, the de-facto leader of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). India complains that long-running OPEC production cuts have created uncertainty for customers and led to a surge in prices, creating fiscal challenges for a country where heavily-taxed retail fuel prices recently touched record highs, threatening an economic recovery. Indian state refiners - top refiner IOC, Bharat Petroleum Corporation, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals - are planning to cut oil imports from Saudi Arabia by about a quarter in May, Reuters reported in March. Oil from Johan Sverdrup, the largest North Sea discovery in more than three decades, started to flow to Asia's top oil importers in late 2019, with India's Reliance Industries among its first takers.