'India has to ensure the flow of traditional energy such as oil and gas', says minister Hardeep Singh Puri

NEW DELHI: Petroleum minister

Hardeep Singh Puri

highlighted India's successful navigation of volatile oil markets and overcoming limited strategic oil storage challenges during the India Energy Week conference in Goa. Puri emphasized the nation's commitment to ensuring an uninterrupted flow of

traditional energy

, such as

oil and gas

, while advancing its energy transition plans.

India's strategic planning and investments in the refining sector were praised by Puri for contributing to the development of a robust oil industry. Despite lacking large oil reserves, India managed to establish a significant oil industry, with crude oil being the country's largest import item last fiscal year, while petroleum products constituted the largest share of exports.
The strategic petroleum reserves, managed by Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd., currently have a capacity of 5.33 million metric tons, providing for approximately 9.5 days of total net oil imports. State oil companies also contribute to national storage facilities, ensuring a total capacity of 74 days of total net imports.
Minister Puri stressed the importance of a continuous flow of traditional energy during the transition to cleaner sources. He applauded India's role as a unifier in the global energy landscape and emphasized stable crude oil prices for both producing and consuming countries.

Looking forward,

Minister

Puri addressed India's crude imports, which rose 2.4% year-on-year to 233.38 million metric tons in the latest provisional data. Russia emerged as the leading crude supplier to India in 2023, contributing over 35% of the country's total crude imports.
Despite recent challenges affecting crude shipments, including Red Sea attacks causing diversions and higher shipping costs, Puri confirmed that India continues to import around 30% of its crude requirements from Russia.

Minister Puri concluded by emphasizing the importance of addressing global energy challenges while prioritizing energy security, affordability, and sustainability. He highlighted India's flagship domestic energy schemes and global initiatives, such as the International Solar Alliance and Global Biofuels Alliance, aimed at ensuring affordable energy access and accelerating the transition to cleaner energy sources. Puri expressed India's readiness to collaborate with partner countries in replicating successful strategies across both conventional and non-conventional energy sources for a sustainable global energy model.