India's Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd. has
bought a cargo of Yemeni Masila crude for loading in September, a trader said
Wednesday.
MRPL bought the 600,000-barrel parcel from European trader Arcadia at a
discount of $1 a barrel to Dated Brent, for loading in the first half of
September.
MRPL, like other Indian refiners, could see a delay in shipments of crude oil
from Iran in August because of pending resolution of a payment issue between
the two countries. But the crude parcel purchased Wednesday isn't a replacement
cargo for Iranian crude because it is of low-sulfur or sweet grade unlike the
high-sulfur or sour oil from Iran.
MRPL executives have said the company expects to receive crude supplies from
Iran in August, despite warnings from Tehran earlier this month that shipments
to India could be stopped unless New Delhi finds a way to transfer the $5
billion in outstanding payments. But shipments of early-August loading barrels
could be delayed as both countries try to sort out the payment issue.
Payments have been pending since December when India's central bank scrapped a
long-standing clearing mechanism, which the U.S. says was opaque and could be
used by Tehran to finance its alleged nuclear weapons program. New Delhi and
Tehran are yet to find a solution.
Iran's crude oil exports in July fell by about 100,000 barrels a day, based on
preliminary figures, after a particularly high number in June.
Iran supplies about 400,000 barrels a day of crude to India, which is its
largest customer after China.