Indian refiners have bought crude from both West Asia and West Africa, with Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals taking 1 million barrels of Oman crude through a tender and state-run Indian Oil Corp purchasing 4 million barrels of West African grades, three trade sources told Reuters. The report was published by The Hindu BusinessLine on August 5, 2026.
West Asian cargo: Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals
According to the three trade sources, Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals bought 1 million barrels of Oman crude via a tender. The cargo was acquired at a premium of about $3 a barrel to the dated Brent contract, the sources said, with one source identifying the seller as Mitsui & Co Energy Trading Singapore. The reported tender result gives a concrete price marker for Indian demand for Omani crude: a premium of roughly $3 per barrel over the dated Brent benchmark.
West African cargo: Indian Oil Corp
Separately, Indian Oil Corp — described by Reuters as the country's biggest refiner by capacity — purchased four million barrels of West African crude, the trade sources said. The purchase covers multiple grades:
- Angolan Nemba
- Angolan Saxi Batuque
- Angolan Clov
- Congo's Djeno
All four grades were bought from Chevron, the sources said. The West African transaction is roughly four times the size of the Oman tendered volume, based on the figures reported by Reuters.
Deal snapshot
| Refiner | Volume | Crude / grades | Reported seller | Reported premium |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals | 1 million barrels | Oman crude | Mitsui & Co Energy Trading Singapore | About $3 per barrel to dated Brent |
| Indian Oil Corp | 4 million barrels | Angolan Nemba, Saxi Batuque, Clov; Congo Djeno | Chevron | Not disclosed |
Source basis and trading context
The information came from three trade sources who spoke on Wednesday, according to Reuters. One source specifically named Mitsui & Co Energy Trading Singapore as the seller of the Oman crude. The sources also supplied the volume, seller and grade details for Indian Oil Corp's West African purchase. Reuters described Indian Oil Corp as a state-run company and India's biggest refiner by capacity, while Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals was identified as an Indian refiner.
The companies typically do not comment on commercial trades, according to the Reuters report.
Published on August 5, 2026, the report covers two separate crude purchases: a 1-million-barrel West Asian tender award and a 4-million-barrel West African multi-grade deal. Both transactions place Indian refining demand in the market for West Asian and West African crude, with Chevron acting as the seller on the larger cargo and Mitsui & Co Energy Trading Singapore named on the Omani tender.
Sources:
