India open to more US crude imports, says Commerce Secretary

Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said on Wednesday (October 15) that India was ready to increase energy purchases from the US. Pointing out that in the past 7-8 years, energy purchases from the US, largely crude oil, have come down from USD 25 billion to around USD 12-13 billion, Agarwal said that the situation provides headroom of around USD 12-15 billion, which India can purchase without bothering about the configuration of refineries.

"So, there is a headroom of around USD 12-15 billion, which we can purchase without worrying about the configuration of refineries," said Agrawal, who will join the Indian delegation in the US on Thursday (October 16) for trade talks.

‘India keen on diversifying energy purchase’

Elaborating further, the Commerce Secretary said that India has given clear indications to the US of its willingness to diversify its portfolio as far as energy imports are concerned, adding that it is “the best strategy for a big buyer like India."

However, Agarwal clarified that although India would be happy to buy more energy from the US, the purchase would be subject to the right pricing. "As a country, we will be very happy to buy more energy from the US, subject to...availability at the right price," he said.

Also Read: India diversifying away from Russian oil, says Trump aide, Jamieson Greer

‘Looking for a win-win solution’

"Our negotiating team is already in the US, and (they are) trying to see if we can have a win-win solution between the two sides, which can address some of these tariff issues," said the Commerce Secretary.

When asked if the latest round of Indo-US trade talks was a formal round of discussions, Agarwal said that the US is in shutdown, and because of that, their manpower strength is down as they are not working.

"So, that's not the right time to have a full-fledged negotiation. Having said that, there is a movement on both sides where we are trying to see if there is a pathway to address the current trade challenges. Both sides are discussing to see if there are any answers," he added.

Also Read: Trump aide targets India in trade dispute, says New Delhi needs fixing

The backdrop

In February this year, leaders of the two countries directed officials to negotiate a proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA). They have fixed a deadline to conclude the first tranche of the pact by the fall (October-November) of 2025.

So far, five rounds of negotiations have been completed. Last month, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal led an official delegation to New York for trade talks.

These deliberations assume significance as the relations between the two countries have been reeling under severe stress after the Trump administration imposed a steep 50 per cent tariff on Indian goods. It includes a 25 per cent additional import duty for buying Russian crude oil. India has described these duties as "unfair, unjustified and unreasonable".

(With agency inputs)