India Saved Over Rs 5,000 Crore By Filling Strategic Crude Oil Storages During April-May Slump

International oil prices had plummeted to a two-decade low in April-May due to lack of demand owing the COVID-19 pandemic. India gained valuable advantage through the situation by filling its three strategic underground crude oil storages in Padur, Vishakhapatnam and Mangaluru, reports PTI.

In January 2020, crude oil averagely cost USD 60 per barrel. The charge dropped down to almost 1/3rd of that at USD 19 per barrel in the Indian summer. The country saved INR 5,069 crore through this initiative, as it asked the oil firms owned by the state to procure crude oil during the months of April and May.

Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan shed light on the same in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha. “Taking advantage of the low crude oil prices in the international market, India purchased 16.71 million barrels (mbbl) of crude in April-May, 2020 and filled all the three Strategic Petroleum Reserves created at Visakhapatnam, Mangalore, and Padur,” Pradhan’s reply read.

Oil was bought from Iraq, UAE and Saudi Arabia. Moreover, underground storage were built by The Strategic Petroleum Reserve entity of India (ISPRL) at Padur, Vishakhapatnam and Mangalore as insurance cover against disruptions caused in supply and price of the product.