India set to receive first Iranian oil shipment in seven years

India is poised to receive its first shipment of Iranian crude oil since 2019, after the United States granted a 30-day sanctions waiver for oil already at sea amid tensions in the Strait of Hormuz.

The tanker Ping Shun, carrying 600,000 barrels of crude from Kharg Island, is en route to Vadinar port in Gujarat, signaling a potential revival in Indo-Iran oil trade, Caliber.Az reports per Indian media. 

"This is the first such delivery since May 2019 and comes at a critical time for Indian refiners facing tightening inventories," said Sumit Ritolia, Lead Research Analyst, Refining and Modelling at commodity market analytic firm Kpler.

The identity of the buyer has not been disclosed. Vadinar hosts the 20 million tonnes-per-year refinery of Naraya Energy, backed by Russian oil giant Rosneft, and also serves as a landing point for crude destined for hinterland refineries such as Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd’s (BPCL) Bina refinery.

The US waiver, announced in March, allows the purchase of Iranian oil at sea for 30 days as part of efforts to ease rising oil prices triggered by the US-Israeli conflict with Iran. The waiver expires on April 19. Estimates suggest that 95 million barrels of Iranian crude are currently at sea, with around 51 million barrels potentially destined for India, while the remainder is likely to go to buyers in China and Southeast Asia.

By Sabina Mammadli