India likely to slash Iranian oil imports by 11% amid US pressure

16 May 2012 Evaluate

Giving in to the pressure from the US, India has decided to cut down its oil exports by 11% from Iran. The decision was conveyed by the minister of state for petroleum R P N Singh in a written reply to the Parliament. The decision has come in after the US emissary arrived in India to help it wean off imports from Iran.

India, which currently imports about 12% of its total oil imports from Iran, had so far refrained from reducing its imports on grounds that Iranian oil is essential for the country’s energy requirements and would be difficult to replace. However the US government is not too happy with the decision and the US secretary of State Hillary Clinton in her visit to the country last week had pressed on India to do more.

India imported 18.5 million tons and 17.44 million tons from Iran in 2010-11 and 2011-12 respectively. It has now targeted to bring it down to 15.5 million tons in 2012-13. The country has also been looking at diversifying its oil imports to meet its energy requirements. Currently it imports oil from 30 different countries.

India and China are Iran’s biggest importers of oil. The US has granted waivers to Japan and 10 European countries that import oil from Iran but has left India and China. It is of the opinion that India needs to do more in terms of reducing its dependence on Iran to win waivers.

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