India sends out clear signal of its clout, foreshadowing coming changes in world oil scene

When India’s government last month asked refiners to speed up diversification and reduce dependence on the Middle East – days after OPEC+ said it would maintain production cuts – it sent a message about its clout and foreshadowed changes to the world’s energy maps.

It was a move that had been in the works for years, fuelled by repeated comments from Indian Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, who in 2015 called oil purchases a “weapon” for his country.