India Eyes Iranian Oil Again — But at a Price Higher Than Brent

Iranian oil is being offered to Indian refiners at a premium to Brent crude after the US temporarily waived sanctions to help ease the ongoing energy crisis, Reuters reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.

According to the report, Indian refiners have been given a limited window of one month to maximise purchases of crude oil and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) from Iran. The Trump administration on Friday issued a 30-day sanctions waiver for the purchase of Iranian oil that is already at sea. The waiver applies to cargoes loaded on or before March and discharged by April 19, according to the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

The report stated that Iranian crude has been offered at a premium of $6–$8 per barrel over Brent, with payments expected to be settled within seven days of cargo arrival. Traders, along with the National Iranian Oil Co. (NIOC), are seeking payments in US dollars, although some traders are also willing to accept settlement in Indian rupees, sources told Reuters. Indian refiners are awaiting clarity on the payment mechanism before signing deals with NIOC, as Iran remains cut off from the SWIFT global payments system.

Speaking earlier at an energy conference, Sujata Sharma, joint secretary at the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, said any decision to purchase Iranian fuel would be a “techno-commercial decision” taken independently by oil marketing companies.

India, the world’s third-largest importer and consumer of crude oil, has not purchased Iranian crude since May 2019 after the US tightened sanctions on Tehran. In recent years, India had diversified its crude sourcing strategy, increasing imports from Russia and other suppliers to manage pricing risks.

However, renewed geopolitical tensions have complicated procurement strategies. Western pressure on India to curb Russian oil imports, combined with supply disruptions in West Asia, has placed New Delhi in a vulnerable position. Crude shipments through the Strait of Hormuz have been impacted after Iran shut the strategic waterway in retaliation for the combined military strike by the US and Israel on February 28, intensifying concerns over global energy supply.