NEW DELHI, Aug. 1 (UPI) -- Oil refiners in India will start paying for the crude they buy from Iran through a Turkish bank in Istanbul, ending a seven-month stalemate, sources said.
India was receiving Iranian crude oil shipments on credit because of payment obstacles brought on by economic sanctions placed on Tehran. Iranian officials had said they might block August deliveries unless New Delhi figured out a way to settle its debt.
Indian refiners said they were opening an account in the Union Bank of India to transfer payments based on the euro to Turkey's state-owned Halkbank in Istanbul, sources told the Press Trust of India.
Ahmad Qalebani, managing director of the National Iranian Oil Co., told the Oil Ministry's Petroenergy Information Network that the payment issue was resolved.
"Following bilateral negotiations, the two sides agreed to settle the outstanding bills as soon as possible," he was quoted as saying.
Iran is one of the largest suppliers of crude oil to India. India has imported about 12 million barrels of oil per month from Iran, racking up a $5 billion credit to Tehran.
U.S. officials following a July visit to New Delhi by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had suggested Washington would help India overcome the crude impasse.
