Union petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan has allayed fears of oil supply disruption following a drone attack on Saudi Aramaco – the world’s biggest crude-processing plant set it ablaze in Saudi Arabia and forced the kingdom to cut its oil production by half.
“We have reviewed our overall crude oil supplies for the month of September with our oil marketing companies (OMCs). We are confident there would be no supply disruption to India. We are closely monitoring the evolving situation,” Pradhan tweeted.
The minister also said that Aramaco has assured India of a steady supply.
“Following the attacks on the oil stabilization centres of @Saudi_Aramco, top executives of Aramco have been contacted. Indian ambassador in Riyadh @IndianEmbRiyadh contacted the senior management of Aramco to ensure steady supply to India,” he said..
Saudi Arabia is the world’s biggest oil exporter and a major source of energy for India. It is the second largest supplier of crude oil and cooking gas to India.
The drone attacks pushed global crude prices up by almost 12 per cent which is the biggest surge since 1988, said Ashish Nanda EVP and Business Head – PCG, Commodities and Currency Business, Kotak Securities, according to reports. A spike in global crude prices will impact India’s oil import bill and trade deficit.
Saudi Aramco’s crude-processing facilities at Abqaiq and Khurais have been forced to cut output by 5.7 million barrels per day. The company has not given a date by which it expects to resume full production.
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