State-run BPCL to sign $780 mn crude sourcing deal with Brazil's Petrobras
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. State-run Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd (BPCL) will sign a contract with Brazil's Petrobras next week to supply 12 million barrels of crude oil a petroleum ministry statement said, as India continues to diversify its sourcing beyond Russia and West Asia.
The contract will be signed at the upcoming India Energy Week 2026, to be held in Goa on 27-30 January. BPCL and Petrobras had signed a one-year contract in February last year. Under the new contract, crude oil will be supplied over FY27.
Union minister for petroleum and natural gas Hardeep Singh Puri said the global market is rapidly changing and India has diversified its oil import basket to navigate the volatile scenario. While India was earlier buying oil from 27 countries, now it is buying from 41 countries, Puri said. "We basically allow the market to propel the essential decision," he said.
The contract gains significance amid volatile global oil markets, with slowing Russian supplies, the recent US intervention in Venezuela, and lingering tensions in West Asia. India imports about 90% of its oil requirements, sourcing oil worth $161 billion last fiscal. India is the world's third-largest importer of crude oil after the US and China, and its demand has been growing every year.
A report from the parliamentary standing committee on petroleum and natural gas last month raised concerns over India's oil import dependence amid an uncertain geopolitical scenario and asked the government to diversify the country's crude sourcing strategy. "More and more energy is coming into the global market from the western hemisphere. By western hemisphere, I mean Brazil, Guyana, Suriname, Canada.
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