India may cut Iranian oil imports by 15% in 2014/15

NDTV Profit Desk

14 Jan 2014, 02:17 PM IST

India may cut Iranian oil imports by 15 per cent in 2014/15 from the current fiscal year's target, if western sanctions on Iran are not eased and the situation remains the same, a senior oil ministry official said on Tuesday.

India, Iran's second-biggest customer after China, may import 180,000-185,000 barrels per day (bpd) of Iranian oil in 2014/15 fiscal year beginning in April, and would be able to import close to the targeted 220,000 bpd in the current fiscal year, R.K. Singh told reporters.

Tough U.S. and EU sanctions have slashed exports from the OPEC member by more than half to about 1 million barrels per day (bpd), costing it as much as $80 billion in lost revenue since early 2012, according to White House estimates.

Even though a breakthrough accord was reached in November between world powers and Tehran over its disputed nuclear programme, tough work lies ahead in moving on from the initial deal.