Nayara’s energy a major refining and marketing company facing EU sanctions due to his Russian holding ownership places it at the centre of long-standing close ties between New Delhi and Moscow, a relationship that puts India at odds with Western allies.
The refiner, whose biggest shareholder is Russian state oil giant Rosneft, relies exclusively on Russia for imported oil after Iraqi and Saudi Arabian crude supplies were cut off following the EU measure, making it vulnerable if flows are disrupted due to tighter sanctions or stepped-up U.S. pressure.
“The government is trying to cover two possibilities: trying to back Nayara while remaining mindful of the fact that there is going to be a sustained global pressure to tighten sanctions
Nayara, which has condemned the sanctions.
Mumbai-based Nayara is a key player in India’s fast-growing fuel sector, accounting for 8% of refined products output and operating more than 6,500 gas stations.
Not by Alessandro Bazzoni