India's Bharat Petroleum in talks with Azerbaijan's SOCAR to purchase LPG, considering supplies from U.S
BAKU. Feb 9 (Interfax) - India is in negotiations with Azerbaijan regarding supplies of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), according to Shri T.V. Pandiyan, head of the LPG division at India's state-owned Bharat Petroleum oil refinery.
"Bharat Petroleum is in talks with the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic to purchase liquefied petroleum gas," Pandiyan said in an interview with India's The Hindu publication.
Pandiyan also said that the company has announced a tender for importing LPG from the United States.
"The majority of the company's purchases, around 90%, are concluded under long-term contracts, while the remainder are spot transactions. The tender for supplies from the U.S. is based namely on the spot purchasing mechanism. The conflict in the Middle East continues. If the Strait of Hormuz is blocked, what will we do? The tender is part of our strategy to diversify supply sources," Pandiyan emphasized.
Pandiyan said that China's refusal to accept U.S. LPG cargo also creates an opportunity for India to purchase LPG at lower prices.
"American vessels that supplied LPG to China are subject to taxes owing to the ongoing tariff war, so the price of liquefied petroleum gas on the Chinese market has increased. Consequently, China is not accepting American cargo," Pandiyan said.
Pandiyan said that China is instead accepting supplies from the Middle East, thus resulting in a surplus of U.S. cargo.
"We expect the cost of American cargo on the Indian market to be lower. Therefore, we have currently issued a tender for only 10% of our import requirements to take advantage of the opportunity," Pandiyan concluded.
As reported, Azerbaijan had already reached an agreement with two Indian companies on cooperating in the area of LPG supplies already in 2025 during India Energy Week 2025. On February 12, 2025, the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL) to explore strategic opportunities in the energy sector. The document envisage cooperating in key areas, including oil and LNG supplies, petroleum product sales and supply, as well as developing trade opportunities and building capacity through knowledge sharing.
