Turmoil in Bangladesh: India's oil exports to Bangladesh remain unaffected

Despite political unrest in Bangladesh, India continues to export diesel to Bangladesh and the business remains unaffected, chairman of the firm selling oil said on Saturday.

Numaligarh Refinery in Assam exports diesel to Bangladesh through a pipeline.

“There is no disruption,” Oil India Ltd (OIL) chairman and managing director Ranjit Rath told reporters here.

Numaligarh Refinery is a subsidiary of OIL and Rath is the chairman of the refinery as well.

Diesel continues to be exported through the Siliguri (Assam) to Parbatipur (Bangladesh) pipeline, he said.

The pipeline passes 5.156 kms in India whereas it passes 124.346 kms in Bangladesh.

“Letter of credit is in place for supplies to Bangladesh,” he said.

While the pipeline has a capacity to transport 1 million tonnes per annum of diesel, currently about 400,000 tonnes is exported.

After Sheikh Hasina resigned as prime minister of Bangladesh and fled to India amid mass protests by students in the country, some Indian businesses have been impacted. Adani Group has seen dues for electricity it exports pile up.

On OIL’s other overseas venture in Russia, Rath said the company is yet to repatriate about USD 250 million of dividend from the Vankorneft and Tass-Yuryakh oilfields.

The dividend is parked in the Moscow branch of an Indian bank. Western sanctions on Russia since its war in Ukraine has led to difficulty in bringing back the money.

Other Indian companies also hold stakes in the two projects and the total dividend received but not repatriated to India could be as high as USD 900 million.