India’s MRPL pauses Russian oil buying to avoid sanctions risks, executive says

HYDERABAD: India’s state-run refiner Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd has no immediate plans to buy Russian oil due to risks involved after the latest U.S. sanctions on Moscow’s top oil producers, a company executive told reporters on Wednesday.

U.S. President Donald Trump last week imposed sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil, Russia’s two largest oil companies, in an attempt to pressure President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine.

The MRPL executive, who declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter, said it was difficult for the company to trace back and ensure oil supplies do not involve sanctioned entities.

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MRPL is the only state refiner that exports large quantities of refined products, including diesel and jet fuel, so it has to ensure there is no breach of sanctions, the executive said.

MRPL, which on average buys 3 million barrels of Russian oil per month, has enough oil to cover processing needs for November and December, according to the company official.

The refiner is seeking supply of oil through a tender for December.

MRPL operates a 300,000 barrels-per-day refinery in southern Karnataka state.