Heavy Oil WTI Brent – UPSC Energy GS-3

Venezuela crisis unlikely to impact India’s energy security

Context

  • Political tensions and U.S. actions against Venezuela have raised concerns about global oil supply.
  • India’s exposure to Venezuelan crude has become minimal due to U.S. sanctions imposed since 2019.

Key Points

  • Venezuela supplies around 0.3% of India’s total crude oil imports in the current financial year.
  • India sharply reduced crude imports after the 2019 U.S. sanctions to avoid secondary sanctions.
  • Venezuela accounts for about 3.5% of OPEC exports and roughly 1% of global oil supply.
  • Venezuelan crude is heavy oil requiring specialized refineries, and most exports are directed to China.
  • Therefore, short-term instability in Venezuela has negligible impact on India’s energy security.

Definitions

  • Heavy oil refers to dense, high-viscosity crude with high sulphur content, making it difficult and costly to refine.
  • WTI (West Texas Intermediate) is a light, sweet crude oil benchmark primarily used in the U.S.
  • Brent crude is a light crude benchmark for Europe and much of Asia and is more relevant for India.
heavy oil WTI Brent
heavy oil WTI Brent
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