Russia is having problems receiving payment for oil supplies to India in Emirati dirhams.
As Ukrinform reports, this was reported by the Reuters news agency, citing informed sources.
Deliveries of Russian Sokol crude to Indian Oil Corp (IOC.NS) have been delayed due to payment problems, forcing India's largest refiner to use its reserves and buy more oil from the Middle East.
It is noted that IOC is the only state-owned refinery that has an annual agreement to purchase various Russian grades of oil, including Sokol, from the Russian oil company Rosneft. According to agency sources, this Russian oil is supplied to IOC by Sakhalin-1 LLC, part of Rosneft.
Indian state-owned oil refiners themselves are paying Russia in United Arab Emirates dirhams after the government advised them to stop using the Chinese yuan, although private oil refiners still pay in yuan due to a lack of alternatives.
“IOC payments for Sokol oil were complicated due to the fact that Sakhalin-1 LLC was unable to open a bank account in the UAE to accept payments in dirhams,” the sources said.
As reported, India has become the largest buyer of Russian oil shipped by sea after European buyers abandoned Russian oil.
Earlier, India's petroleum ministry told a parliamentary committee that state-owned oil companies are facing problems in paying for Russian oil because not all Indian banks can process payments in US dollars for Russian oil.