(World Oil) – India signaled interest in deeper energy ties with Venezuela, including sourcing crude supplies and investments in the country’s oil sector, after acting Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez held talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi.
“The government is aggressively seeking new sources of crude oil and energy to ensure India’s energy security,” Rudrendra Tandon, secretary east in the Ministry of External Affairs, told reporters during a briefing on Rodríguez’s visit. “So Venezuela is an opportunity and it is very much part of our plan.”
Rodríguez’s June 3-7 visit coincides with India’s renewed effort to broaden its sources of crude after the Iran conflict blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint through which almost 40% of the country’s oil supplies flowed before the war. The nation imports about 90% of the crude it consumes.
Venezuela has emerged as an increasingly attractive source of energy for the world’s third-largest oil consumer. India received a parcel of Venezuelan oil in April after a yearlong hiatus as Washington eased sanctions on the OPEC producer.
The shipments climbed to about 283,000 bpd in April, the highest since March 2020, according to data compiled by Kpler. The data analytics firm estimates June arrivals could increase to about 380,000 bpd in a sign of Venezuela’s growing importance in India’s energy mix.
“In the energy sector, we see perfect complementarity,” Tandon told reporters on Thursday. “In our spot purchases, Venezuela has already emerged as the third-largest supplier this month,” he said.
The leaders also discussed potential Indian investments in Venezuela’s pharmaceuticals, mining and critical minerals sectors, though no major agreements will be signed during the visit, Tandon said.
Any investments, including in energy, would be subject to commercial negotiations between companies and would be taken up separately at a later stage, he added.
