US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed increasing Venezuelan oil purchases with Reliance Industries on Tuesday. India imported 196,000 barrels per day in September. Rubio said, "India is a refining superpower. They have the capability to refine heavy crude." This move helps India diversify energy sources amid volatile global supply challenges.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discusses increasing Venezuelan oil purchases with Reliance Industries, highlighting India's refining capacity and efforts to diversify energy sources amid global supply challenges.
India imported around 196,000 barrels per day (bpd) from Venezuela in September, after purchases surged to about 358,000 bpd in August, the highest since 2020. October purchases are likely to exceed August levels.
Washington exercises significant control over the South American country's hydrocarbon assets.
On Tuesday, Rubio told reporters in Mumbai that Indian refiners were willing to process more Venezuelan oil, while acknowledging that some sanctions-related hurdles would need to be worked through. "India is a refining superpower. They have the capability to refine heavy crude. They've done so in the past, and I think as more and more Venezuelan oil comes online, it's something they can do," he said.
His remarks put India's large and complex refining system at the centre of Washington's plans to bring more Venezuelan oil into global markets. Rubio said Venezuela alone could not immediately fill supply gaps created elsewhere, but additional production could help in the short term and become more significant over time.
"With India, we've talked about it in the past, and they sound ready. They're willing to do it. There might be a few impediments that stand in the way in terms of sanctions and so forth that we'll have to work through," he said. "India has expressed repeatedly its desire to diversify its energy portfolio, which is a smart thing to do. It's not easy to do that from one day to the next."
The discussion comes as India seeks to widen its crude sourcing options amid volatile global supplies and geopolitical risks.
Rubio added that India had made "substantial progress" in diversification and that the issue went beyond purchases of Russian crude. "In the end, it's not just about Russian oil; it's about India's desire to diversify, and we think we can be a source of some of its energy inputs," Rubio said.
India's overall crude imports rose to around 5.3 million bpd in September, while Russian supplies declined to about 1.75 million bpd as refiners diversified purchases, according to Kpler data reported last month.