India shores up oil reserves as US grace period to expire this weekend

India has received around 4 million barrels of Iranian oil, marking the first such import in seven years thanks to a US grace period that is set to expire this weekend.

According to a report by Bloomberg, a very large oil container named Jaya is discharging its cargo at Paradip on India’s east coast as New Delhi shores up oil reserves before the expiry of the 30-day temporary sanctions waiver.

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The report cited ship-tracking data from intelligence firms Kpler and Vortexa and unnamed sources.

Earlier on Sunday, another vessel, Felicity, carrying nearly two million barrels of Iranian oil, anchored off Sikka on Gujarat’s coast.

Meanwhile, another Iran-owned tanker, Derya, is also reportedly awaiting orders near India’s west coast.

The vessel was reportedly loaded with crude from Iran’s Kharg Island in late March but it is yet to discharge its cargo as it may have missed the US waiver cutoff, the report claimed.

Experts had called on India to maximise oil imports from Iran during the temporary 30-day sanctions waiver from the US.

According to former Indian diplomat Veena Sikri, New Delhi could maximise oil purchases from Iran during the temporary sanctions waiver period while continuing to diversify its energy imports to safeguard long-term energy security.

While speaking to news agency ANI last month, Sikri had said the recent lifting of sanctions appears temporary, given the evolving conflict between Iran and the United States and Israel.

“Well, I think it’s good that, you know, we are again able to buy oil from Iran. I think the lifting of the sanctions seems to be very temporary because there’s no idea how the conflict between Iran on one hand and the US-Israel on the other hand how it’s developing,” she said.

She had noted that the waiver period may last about 30 days, during which India could increase imports from Tehran.