Page 9 - AsianOil Week 39 2022

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Indian central bank offers credit line

to avoid refiners buying dollars on

spot market

PIPELINES & INDIA’S central bank is encouraging the coun- dollars as part of a number of measures to prop
TRANSPORT try’s state-run refiners to reduce dollar buying on the currency up.
the spot market, in an effort to contain the sharp Indian Oil, Hindustan Petroleum and Bharat
India's rupee plunged drop in the value of the Indian rupee, sources Petroleum, the only refiners that will benefit
to an all-time low of told Reuters on September 30. The refiners have from the credit line, together control more than
81.67 against the US instead been asked to rely on a special credit line, half of the country’s 5mn barrels per day of refin-
dollar at the start of last according to the media agency. ing capacity. And India’s monthly oil purchases
week. The Resource Bank of India (RBI) has from overseas account for around 30% of the
ensured $9bn has been made available to the country’s overall imports.
overseas branches of some Indian banks for the Banks taking part in the credit line include
country’s three state-run refiners, Indian Oil the State Bank of India, Canara Bank, Bank of
Corp, Hindustan Petroleum and Bharat Petro- Baroda, Axis Bank and Punjab National Bank,
leum, to have access. Those funds are available at according to Reuters.
market rates, Reuters reported. In related news, Russia has been pushing for
“Since [the] last 2-3 days RBI has been ask- Indian refiners to buy its oil in currencies other
ing companies to tap this credit line,” one of the than the US dollar, through fear that those
sources said. funds could be at risk of sanctions. In a report
India’s rupee plunged to an all-time low of on September 28, though, Reuters reported
81.67 against the US dollar at the start of last that Indian companies were continuing to
week, down from 75 in April, amid market use the greenback for Russian oil purchases,
uncertainty caused by the Russia-Ukraine war, after Dubai’s Mashreq bank declined to handle
soaring oil prices and global financial instability. payments from at least two refines in Emirati
India’s central bank is expected to start selling dirhams. ™

Week 39 05•October•2022 www. NEWSBASE .com P9