New Delhi. Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Tuesday said India will be able to deal with any shock to crude oil supplies due to the possible expansion of the ongoing conflict in West Asia. After Iran’s missile attack on Israel, international crude oil prices have increased from around $70 per barrel to around $79 per barrel in less than a week. This has happened due to the fear of Israel taking retaliatory action and escalating the conflict.
Puri said in this context, “There is no need to panic.” There is more than enough oil available in the world.” India, the world’s third largest oil importer and consumer, fulfills 85 percent of its crude oil needs through imports. The Petroleum Minister said in the ‘Energy Transition Summit India’ conference, “The situation is manageable. There is no need to worry. We are confident that we will be able to deal with the situation just like in the past.” He said that the supply of oil in the international market is very high and even if some parties stop production or there are supply related problems, there are new suppliers in the market who will fill the shortage.
After Iran’s missile attack, it is feared that Israel may target oil or nuclear facilities of oil producing Iran. If this happens, Iran can respond by directly attacking Israel or closing the Strait of Hormuz.
The Strait of Hormuz located between Oman and Iran is considered very important for oil transportation. One-fifth of global oil passes through this strait. Crude oil from all the major oil producing countries – Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait and United Arab Emirates (UAE) is exported through the Strait of Hormuz. Of these, only Saudi Arabia and UAE have oil pipelines that can cross the Strait of Hormuz.