Crude prices cool down as US allows all countries to buy Russian oil

Global oil prices eased slightly after the US allowed a 30-day waiver for countries to buy Russian oil already in transit. Brent and WTI declined marginally, while India assured adequate crude supplies through diversified sourcing and reduced dependence on the Strait of Hormuz route

New Delhi: Global oil prices cooled down marginally on Friday after the US announced a 30-day waiver, allowing all countries to purchase Russian oil. Brent crude was trading at $99.99 per barrel, down 0.47 per cent, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) dropped 0.67 per cent to $95.09 per barrel.

US Secretary of Treasury, Scott Bessent, said on X that “To increase the global reach of existing supply, @USTreasury is providing a temporary authorisation to permit countries to purchase Russian oil currently stranded at sea”. “This narrowly tailored, short-term measure applies only to oil already in transit and will not provide significant financial benefit to the Russian government, which derives the majority of its energy revenue from taxes assessed at the point of extraction,” Bessent posted.

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The temporary increase in oil prices is a short-term and temporary disruption that will result in a massive benefit to our nation and economy in the long-term, he added. The US waiver applies to Russian-origin crude oil and petroleum products loaded on vessels — on or before 12:01 am Eastern Daylight Time on March 12.

On Wednesday, the US announced the release of 172 million barrels from its strategic petroleum reserves. Meanwhile, the Indian government said that crude supply position is secure, and volumes secured exceed what Hormuz would have delivered.

Before this crisis, approximately 45 per cent of India’s crude imports transited the Hormuz route. Now, India has secured crude volumes that exceed what the disrupted Strait route would have delivered in the same period. Non-Hormuz sourcing has risen to approximately 70 per cent of crude imports, up from 55 per cent before the conflict began, informed Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Hardeep Singh Puri.

India sources crude from 40 countries, against 27 in 2006-07; this structural diversification, built through sustained policy over successive years, “has given us options that other nations now find themselves without”. Refineries are operating at high capacity utilisation; in several cases, they are exceeding 100 per cent, said Puri.