NEW DELHI, March 3 (UPI) -- New Delhi made a $2.07 billion payment to the Central Bank of Iran for crude oil imports following a three-month suspension, India's oil minister said.
Tehran was selling crude oil to India on credit because the Reserve Bank of India closed the Asian Clearing Union in December. The ACU was used to buy crude oil from Iran, though New Delhi faced financial hurdles because of U.S. economic sanctions targeting Iran's energy sector.
Indian Oil Minister S. Jaipal Reddy was quoted by the Economic Times of India as saying cash was moving to Iran through German bank Europisch-Iranische Handelsbank AG.
"Pending dues of National Iranian Oil Company are now being cleared and as of March 1, 2011, payment of $2.07 billion has been made to the Central Bank of Iran," he stated.
EIH would receive euros for the Iranian crude provided Indian importers issue notes saying the money wouldn't be used for sanctioned goods.
U.S. lawmakers have complained that EIH was enabling Iran go forward with its nuclear ambitions.
Iran pumped more than 3.5 million barrels of oil in December, putting it in the No. 2 spot in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. Iran is India's second-largest supplier of crude after Saudi Arabia.
