India must expand its shipping fleet to support local refiners to profit from cheaper crude oil, ET reported chairman of Indian Oil Corp, A S Sahney saying at an industry event on Tuesday.
"We have been neglecting shipping... we have to build our capabilities in shipping. Today we are getting crude at discount but freight is eating that up. Freight is a killing factor," Sahney said on a panel at the Energy Technology and Innovation Meet in Goa, referring to a lack of tankers to carry crude.
Soaring tanker costs and Black Sea security risks pushed freight rates for Russian oil shipments to India to record peaks in early October, To build resilience, Sahney emphasized that India must expand its crude and LPG storage capacity to secure a stronger supply buffer.
