Indian oil refineries exploring possibility of importing Venezuelan crude

Close on the heels of an offer from Venezuelan national oil company, Petreos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA), to repay its debt in kind, Indian government-owned and -operated oil marketing companies (OMCs) are relooking at the operational viability of using Venezuelan crude as feedstock. Sources say that Indian OMCs, which do not use crude imports from Venezuela for their refineries, are examining the technical possibility of using imported crude, as well as the pricing and volume on offer before any purchase agreements with PDVSA are signed.