Hardeep Puri On Indian Govt's 'Moral Duty' In Buying Russian Oil, Says OPEC Has Sovereign Right To Decide On Oil Production

Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri in Washington asserted that no country has told India to stop buying oil from Russia.

New Delhi: Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri said on Friday that the Indian government has a moral duty to provide energy to its citizens and it will continue to buy oil from wherever it has to, asserting that no country has told India to stop buying oil from Russia.

“India will buy oil from wherever it has to for the simple reason that this kind of a discussion cannot be taken to the consuming population of India,” Puri told a group of Indian reporters in Washington, as quoted by news agency PTI. He emphasised that the government has a moral duty to provide energy to its people.

In response to a question, Puri also asserted that India has not been told by anyone to stop buying oil from Russia.

“If you are clear about your policy, which means you believe in energy security and energy affordability, you will buy from wherever you have to purchase energy from sources,” Puri said after his bilateral meeting with US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm.

OPEC Has Sovereign Right To Decide On Oil Production: Puri

Notably, the Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas refrained from commenting on the controversial decision of OPEC on cutting oil production by two million barrels a day, which has taken the world by surprise.

"India is not a part of OPEC. India is at the receiving end of OPEC decisions...,” he said in response to a question, as quoted by PTI.

“I have always traditionally taken the view, it is their sovereign right to decide what they wish to do, how much oil they want to produce and how much they want to put into the market,” Puri said when asked about the decision of OPEC countries to cut oil production.

“But I always say that all of this is subject to the doctrine of consequences intended and unintended,” he added.

“That’s why I'm deliberately exercising not just calm, but also restraint in commenting on what has happened, because I'm told that there were assurances given, don't ask me whom, etc., that in fact they were not planning to do this,” Puri said.

India-US Green Corridor

During his meeting, Puri "broached the idea" of India-US Green Corridor, which elicited a positive response from his US counterpart, reported PTI.

“The turbulence in the energy markets, and I'm using the word turbulence support carefully, will not allow India's resolve … to transition … to green clean and sustainable energy,” the Union Minister said.

The two countries would now look into the broader contours of this ambitious Green Energy Corridor.

India’s import from the US is shooting up and currently buying USD20 billion worth of energy from the United States. There are discussions on buying more from the United States, Puri said.

He noted that while work on green energy would continue, traditional exploration and production of oil and gas would continue as well.

The world is also in progress on green hydrogen. India and the US have an advantage that at present is not being realised, he added.

The Russia-Ukraine war has had a far-reaching impact on the global energy system, causing disruptions in the supply and demand patterns and fracturing long-standing trading relationships.

The conflict pushed up energy prices for many consumers and businesses around the world, hurting households, industries and entire economies of several nations.

India’s crude oil imports from Russia have jumped over 50 times since April and now it makes up for 10 per cent of all crude bought from overseas. Russian oil made up for just 0.2 per cent of all oil imported by India prior to the Ukraine invasion.

The Western countries are gradually bringing down their energy purchases from Russia in response to Moscow's armed offensive.