Reuters: India’s state-run lender State Bank of India cannot open letter of credit for crude imports from Iran, an official at the bank said on Friday.
NEW DELHI Jan 7 (Reuters) – India’s state-run lender State Bank of India cannot open letter of credit for crude imports from Iran, an official at the bank said on Friday.
India and Iran are working to sort out an oil payments dispute that could block imports of 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude and New Delhi is walking a fine line in balancing its energy needs and global diplomatic interests.
Iran is India’s second-largest supplier of crude oil after Saudi Arabia, but Washington has been putting pressure on governments to end dealings with Tehran over its nuclear programme.
(Reporting by Nidhi Verma and Manoj Kumar; editing by Malini Menon)
