Govt Official Says Refiners Used Chinese Yuan For Payment Of Some Russian Oil Imports: Report

Indian refiners have been on the lookout for an alternative payment option as dollar payments can potentially attract sanctions, amid oil imports reaching a new high.

India emerged as a key importer of Russian oil following the invasion of Ukraine.

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Indian oil refiners settled some dues for Russian oil imports in Chinese yuan, although the US dollar remains the dominant currency for the Russian seaborne crude oil payments, reported Reuters, on Friday citing a senior government official. The report comes as Russian oil imports to the country reportedly peaked last month.

India emerged as a key importer of Russian oil following the invasion of Ukraine. This was due to discounted crude prices Russia was offering after being sanctioned by Western countries. However, Indian refiners have since been on the lookout for an alternative payment option as dollar payments can potentially attract sanctions. Earlier, it was reported that some refineries used UAE's dirham to pay for Russian oil. 

"Use of yuan for payment by India will remain limited, given India doesn't accumulate much yuan as export to China is low," the official told Reuters. The news agency last month reported that Indian refiners have started turning to the yuan for some payments for Russian oil.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has previously said that discussions were underway with India to exchange billions of rupees that have accumulated in Indian banks for other currencies. "As for the rupee, this a problem. Because we accumulated billion of rupees in Indian bank accounts. We need to use this money, but to use this money it needs to be transferred to another currency and this is being discussed now," he said. 

Earlier this month, Bloomberg reported that the daily volume of Russian oil imports to India climbed to 2.2 million barrels in June, rising for the 10th month in a row. Russian purchases again exceeded the combined shipments of Saudi Arabia and Iraq. State-run Indian Oil Corp has been the biggest buyer of Russian crude over the past two months, followed by Reliance Industries Ltd.