Concerned about high oil prices: India to OPEC

TIL Desk/Business/New Delhi/ India, the world’s third-biggest oil consumer, has conveyed to OPEC countries its concern over high oil prices that are threatening to impact the nascent economic recovery after the devastating pandemic.

New Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri has made phone calls to key OPEC nations to convey the desire for an affordable price for consumers. After calling his counterparts in Qatar and the UAE, he called Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) kingpin Saudi Arabia on Thursday evening.

 “Had a warm and friendly discussion with His Royal Highness, Prince Abdul Aziz bin Salman Al Saud, Minister of Energy of Saudi Arabia on strengthening bilateral energy partnership and developments in the global energy markets,” Puri tweeted.

 Saudi Arabia, he said, is a central player in the international energy market. “I conveyed my desire to work with His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz to bring greater predictability and calm in the global oil markets, and also to see hydrocarbons become more affordable,” he said.

 Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest exporter of crude oil and India’s second-biggest source after Iraq. The discussions focused “on strengthening bilateral energy partnership and developments in the global energy markets,” he said.