India got its first crude shipment from America in 42 years on Monday, at Paradip port in Odisha which has a capacity of 2 million barrels of crude.
According to the recent commitment on US oil purchases by Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and Bharat Petroleum (BPC) said,”we placed the orders for over two million barrels from the US with the potential to boost bilateral trade by up to $2 billion”.
After receiving the shipment IOC became the first Indian public sector refiner from India to source US crude has placed a cumulative order 3.9 million barrels from the US.
Hindustan Petroleum and BPC, India’s two other public sector refiners, have also placed orders for their Vizag and Kochi refineries from the US.
These three refiners are sourcing heavy crudes for their refineries to equipped to handle the complex mix of crude oils.
Indian companies have made sizeable investments in US shale assets, with a total investment of approximately $5 billion and they also contracted for sourcing liquefied natural gas from the US and the first shipment which might be delivered to India in January 2018.
MaryKay Carlson, chargé d’affaires of US embassy in New Delhi said “The US and India are elevating our cooperation in the field of energy, including plans for cleaner fossil fuels, renewables, nuclear and cutting-edge storage and energy-efficiency technologies. We look forward to working together on further sales of US crude and exploring opportunities to expand the role of natural gas in India.”
“Energy and energy security are pillars of any strong economy. The US looks forward to expanding our cooperation with India in this area.
“The sourcing of the crude from the US is, therefore, a step towards strengthening of India-US bilateral relations in the hydrocarbon sector. The US and India are the world’s largest and third largest consumers of energy respectively. Rich in hydrocarbon assets, the US can be a significant supplier for Indian demand”.
