Two days after Russian President Vladimir Putin concluded his visit to India, during which he assured that Moscow would remain a reliable energy supplier, the Kremlin on Monday said that India, as a sovereign nation, is free to buy oil from sources it deems beneficial. It expressed confidence that New Delhi will continue to prioritise its economic interests.
24 Indian-flagged vessels with 677 Indian seafarers were currently located west of the Strait of Hormuz, and four vessels with 101 Indian seafarers were stationed east of the strategic waterway.
The threat has raised concerns about possible asymmetric attacks outside the region. Iran has also stepped up attacks on energy infrastructure in Gulf countries.
'Workers are being pushed into 12- to 14-hour shifts under poor conditions. These largely leaderless protests are likely to continue.'
By all available indications, the White House drafted a face-saving note and handed it, ready-made, to Islamabad. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was supposed to then post it in the guise of a plea urging Trump to extend the deadline by two weeks 'to allow diplomacy to run its course'. Trump would then graciously accept Pakistan's 'request' and declare a ceasefire. Sharif dutifully posted the message on X. Except that he, or whoever was handling the account, forgot to delete the tell-tale first line visible in the edit history: 'Draft - Pakistan's PM Message on X'. Prem Panicker's must read blog on the Iran War.
India's services sector growth slowed in March, reaching a 14-month low, according to the HSBC India Services PMI. The slowdown reflects weaker new business intakes and rising input costs, particularly in fuel, transport, and logistics.
His remarks come after Trump warned Iran of severe consequences if it fails to reopen the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, a key global energy transit route.
Qatar has halted liquefied natural gas (LNG) production after its facilities came under attack amid the ongoing West Asia conflict, disrupting supplies to India and squeezing feedstock availability for key domestic sectors.
In the present hyper-connected world, there are many domestic and global factors that affect financial markets. Of them, the most powerful and often least predictable are geopolitical events, which often boil down to one diplomatic headline.
Delhi Police have registered multiple FIRs and seized hundreds of LPG cylinders in a crackdown on illegal storage, refilling, and black marketing operations amid concerns of potential supply shortages.
Delhi Police have dismantled an illegal operation involving the storage of over 600 LPG cylinders and arrested an individual for illegally refilling gas cylinders, highlighting concerns over safety and black market activities.
The US government, under President Trump, justifies the intervention as a security necessity rather than a resource grab. The primary official reasons include: narco-terrorism charges, national security and migration crisis.
'If movement remains stalled for three to four months, more than 300,000 recruitments from India could be affected.'
On Friday, during the weekly media briefing, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, when asked about media reports that some Indian oil companies have stopped taking oil from Russia, had said India has made clear its approach on the issue.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announces increased domestic LPG production to offset import disruptions caused by Middle East tensions, alongside assurances of fertiliser availability and the clearing of UPA-era oil bonds.
Oil India has discovered natural gas reserves off the Andaman Islands, the state-owned firm said without putting an estimate of the size of the find. In a statement, OIL said "occurrence of natural gas" was reported in the second exploratory well Vijayapuram-2 drilled in the Offshore Andaman Block AN-OSHP-2018/1, which the company had won under the Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP).
The government has mandated that cooking gas LPG supply to households will be discontinued if consumers fail to switch to piped natural gas where such connectivity is available, under a new order aimed at accelerating gas network expansion and reducing reliance on a single fuel.
Dozens of Indian-flagged ships and over a thousand seafarers are stranded in the Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, and surrounding areas due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz amidst ongoing military actions involving the US, Israel, and Iran.
National oil companies are staring at inventory losses as they have to bring down refinery throughputs because of the plunging demand for fuels following the nationwide lockdown to contain the deadly coronavirus infection. India is the world's third-largest energy consumer but the lockdown has shut businesses, suspended flights, stopped trains and brought almost the entire vehicular movement to a halt, impacting fuel demand.
The Indian government has increased measures to secure fuel and gas supplies following the Strait of Hormuz closure, urging citizens to avoid panic buying. Refineries are operating at high capacity, and sufficient stocks of petrol and diesel are available nationwide.
The family of a Rajasthani sailor, Dalip Singh, is gripped by anxiety after he went missing following an attack on an oil tanker near Oman. The search continues as the family clings to hope amidst the escalating West Asia crisis.
US President Donald Trump announced a deal with Pakistan to develop its oil reserves, suggesting Pakistan might sell oil to India in the future.
Indian equity investors experienced a significant loss of 16.32 lakh crore due to a two-day stock market decline fueled by escalating geopolitical tensions involving the US, Israel, and Iran.
The government is likely to give a subsidy of Rs 30,000-35,000 crore to state-run oil companies - Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum (BPCL), and Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL) - to compensate for losses incurred from selling LPG at below cost over the past 15 months, according to a senior official.
After steep correction in valuations, these have turned attractive but upside will depend on diesel price rises and export-parity pricing.
'We kept our bags packed, ready to jump into the sea. Many times, I felt it could be my last day.'
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday described the latest United States sanctions as an 'unfriendly move' that would not help relations between Moscow and Washington, DC.
In a strategic move to boost offshore energy exploration and operational efficiency, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd (ONGC) and Reliance Industries Ltd have signed an agreement to share resources such as supply vessels used in finding and producing oil and gas.
'Was the five-day pause ever meant to hold, or was it simply another instrument of signaling, of positioning, of buying time in a war where even the pauses are tactical?' asks Prem Panicker in his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
'After we were alerted about the war, none of us could sleep for the next two nights while sailing through those waters.'
Israel and the United States had a plan. Iran punched back. And now the Gulf is reeling, the world is beginning to feel the pain and, as on date, no one in Washington or Tel Aviv appears willing to admit that the punch has landed, notes Prem Panicker, continuing his must-read blog on the war in the Middle East.
Indian restaurants are grappling with a severe LPG shortage due to the West Asia conflict, forcing them to innovate with menus and cooking methods or face potential closures, impacting the food industry and consumers across the country.
The sale of branded petrol and diesel, considered to be more efficient, has dipped by 27 and 50 per cent, respectively, in 2010-11 over the previous year (see chart), despite OMCs selling the products at a thin margin of less than a rupee.
Indians returning from the Middle East share their experiences of fear and uncertainty as the conflict between the US, Israel, and Iran disrupts travel and daily life, leaving many stranded and facing financial strain.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi stayed calm, avoided public confrontation, and focused on India's long-term interests to steady ties with the United States.
In a first, Indian oil public sector undertakings (PSUs) finalised a one-year contract to import around 2.2 million tonnes (mt) of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) from the US. The LPG import deal comes at a time when negotiations for an India-US bilateral trade agreement (BTA) are gathering steam. Earlier in the month, US President Donald Trump had said Washington and New Delhi were "pretty close" to reaching a fair trade deal.
The Indian government has revised its natural gas allocation priorities, placing LPG production alongside CNG and piped cooking gas at the top, due to disruptions in imported gas supplies caused by the conflict in West Asia.
'The next two to three weeks will not be decided in Washington.' 'They will be decided in Tehran, in whatever calculation Iran makes about the costs of continued resistance against the costs of appearing to have yielded.'
The chairman of maritime company Safesea Group has described the attack on the US-owned crude oil tanker Safesea Vishnu, which resulted in the death of an Indian crew member, as "deliberate and calculated". He emphasised the need for governments to ensure the safety of commercial shipping lanes and seafarers.
Rao, who works in the housekeeping section at the airport, informed his parents that he and several others escaped with minor injuries.
