India seeks ‘fair’ price for Saudi oil

new delhi — India is seeking a reasonable price for crude oil from Saudi Arabia, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said on Friday, in a move that could help Riyadh regain top spot in supplying the world’s third largest oil consumer.

“Some instrument can be developed so that the pricing is suitable for both of us,” Pradhan said after a meeting with Saudi counterpart Khalid Al Falih.

“We must get a reasonable

Some instrument can be developed so that the pricing is suitable for both of us Dharmendra Pradhan, India’s Oil Minister

price for crude oil and LPG (liquefied petroleum gas),” he said.

Iraq surpassed Saudi Arabia in 2017 as the top supplier to India. Asia has become the biggest and most important buyer of crude oil from Saudi Aramco and the oil company wants to secure Asian markets for the long term as it faces competition from suppliers such as Russia and the United States. In a bid to woo Saudi Arabian investment, India has offered Saudi Arabia a stake in the second phase of the country’s strategic oil reserves storage facility, Pradhan said.

India is building a 6 million tonne strategic oil reserve. It already has a 5 million tonne strategic reserved stored at 3 locations.

“The way we have done an arrangement with Adnoc (Abu Dhabi National Oil Company) for storage facility, the same way we are discussing with Aramco (Saudi Aramco),” Pradhan said. — Reuters