Refiners in India, elsewhere in Asia look to buy Iranian oil after US waives sanctions

Indian oil refiners are planning to restart their purchases of Iranian oil, and other Asian refiners are also looking into this option after the U.S. temporarily lifted sanctions to help ease an energy shortage linked to the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, traders reported on Saturday. Three sources from Indian refineries mentioned that they will buy Iranian oil and are waiting for guidance from their government and further information from Washington regarding payment details. Indian refiners, which have smaller crude oil reserves compared to other large Asian importers, quickly turned to Russian oil after the U.S. recently eased sanctions. The Indian government was not available for comments outside regular hours. Several refiners in Asia are investigating whether they can also purchase Iranian oil, according to several knowledgeable sources. On Friday, the Trump administration announced a 30-day waiver for sanctions on Iranian oil that is already in transit, as stated by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. This waiver applies to oil loaded onto any ship, including those under sanctions, before March 20 and that must be unloaded by April 19, according to the Office of Foreign Assets Control. This is the third time since the war began that the U.S. has temporarily lifted oil sanctions. According to Emmanuel Belostrino, Kpler's senior manager for crude oil market data, around 170 million barrels of Iranian crude are currently on ships, ranging from the Middle East Gulf to areas near China. Energy consultancy Energy Aspects estimated on March 19 that there are between 130 million and 140 million barrels of Iranian oil at sea, which represents less than 14 days of current production losses from the Middle East.