In an attempt to diversify crude oil sourcing, India's Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Brazilian national oil company Petrobras.
BPCL is one of the largest crude oil importers in the world, and it majorly imports crude from west Asian nations including Saudi Arabia and Iraq. Post the recent geopolitical tensions that happened after Russia invaded Ukraine, India also imported a considerable amount of oil from Russia as well.
Under the new MoU, BPCL will explore more import opportunities with Petrobras which will help the Indian firm diversify its sources of supply, thus cutting down reliance on a particular region.
"The signing of the MoU will strengthen future crude oil trade relations between the two companies and explore potential crude import opportunities by BPCL, on a long-term basis, especially considering the current geopolitical situations," BPCL said in a statement.
The MoU was signed by Arun Kumar Singh, Chairman and Managing Director of BPCL and Caio Paes de Andrade, chief executive officer of Petrobras.
A Mint report recently claimed that India is planning to sign long-term contracts to import 2 million tonnes of crude from Brazil's Petroleo Brasileiro SA and 1 mt from Columbia's state-run Ecopetrol SA.
Meanwhile, Economic Times, quoting people familiar with the matter, recently reported that India is planning to produce 25 million tons of green hydrogen annually by 2047.
India is eyeing to elevate its green hydrogen production to curb energy imports and wean the economy off fossil fuels to meet climate targets, the report added.
