Sri Lanka, India Hold 21st International Maritime Boundary Line Meeting

The 21st International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) meeting between Sri Lanka and India was held onboard the Sri Lanka Naval Ship Sagara at the Indo-Sri Lanka Maritime Boundary Line off Kankasanthurai.
The Sri Lankan delegation consisted of Sri Lanka Navy and Sri Lanka Coast Guard officials and was headed by Commander Northern Naval Area, Rear Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne. The Indian delegation consisted of Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard officials.

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Is Lashkar-e-Taiba Turning Against Pakistan?

Pakistan watchers in India are following the Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba closely.
No wonder.
Long seen as India’s biggest bugbear, the LeT, suspected to have ties to Pakistan's defense establishment, may now be turning against its master, diplomatic and security sources told The Diplomat.
The latest Indian assessment of the LeT is apparently based on defiant posturing of its founder and alleged chief Hafiz Mohammed Saeed on several key issues. This has raised serious questions about the terrorist group’s growing ambitions and brazenness. Saeed is reportedly unhappy with the Pakistan Army’s attitude. He believes that LeT has done more than any other terrorist group to promote the army’s strategic interest but has got back precious little. His group has not only trained recruits for jihad in Kashmir but also carried out some spectacular attacks against India, in addition to training cadres for the Taliban and other terrorist groups. Any sign of the terror group turning away from Pakistan has the potential to threaten Pakistan’s own security and broad interests. But it would also have important implications for India.

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Indian Navy plans major expansion of Karwar base

The Navy's new aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov will be berthed at the Karwar base.

NEW DELHI (PTI): Indian Navy is planning a major expansion of its strategic Karwar naval base in Karnataka where it will berth its Russian-origin aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov and carry out military aircraft operations.

The Navy plans to deploy the Admiral Gorshkov, Scorpene submarines and a number of surface ships at the base after the completion of the over Rs 10,000 crore project there.

A proposal in this regard is expected to be moved before the Cabinet Committee on Security chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for final approval, sources told PTI here.

Project Seabird Phase IIA work will involve construction of a wide range of new facilities and augmentation of certain existing facilities involving an outlay of over Rs 10,000 crore, Navy officials said here.

As per the plans, the Navy will be able to base around 30 major warships at Karwar after the completion of Phase-IIA by 2017-18.

 

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India, Egypt to carry out naval exercise

A file photo.

NEW DELHI (PTI): In their first engagement after the new establishment took over in Egypt, Indian and Egyptian navies will carry out a joint exercise in Alexandria.

Warships of the Mumbai-based western fleet of the Navy are on a westward deployment and will be visiting a number of countries after Egypt.

Indian warships will carry out a basic exercise with their Egyptian counterparts as part of the westward deployment of the naval fleet, Navy officials said here.

This would be the first military engagement between Egypt and India after the newly-elected government has taken over there.

Destroyer INS Mumbai, INS Trishul, INS Gomati and fleet tanker INS Aditya are under the command of Western Fleet commander Rear Admiral A R Karve and had made a port call at Djibouti before proceeding towards Alexandria in Egypt.
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DR Congo troops 'flee into Uganda' after rebel clashes

The Congolese soldiers are said to have been moved away from the border

 

Some 600 Congolese soldiers have fled into Uganda, following clashes with rebels who have seized a border town.

The Ugandan military said the fleeing troops had been disarmed.
As the rebels took control of the Democratic Republic of Congo side of the town of Bunagana, an Indian peacekeeper was killed, the UN says.
M23 rebels loyal to Bosco Ntaganda, who is wanted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court, took up arms in April.
They defected from the army after pressure increased on the government to arrest Gen Ntaganda, when one of his former colleagues was convicted of recruiting child soldiers by the ICC.
Security sources have told the BBC's Ignatius Bahizi in Uganda that the M23 rebels control a 15km (10 mile) stretch of the border running south from the famous Virunga National Park, home to rare mountain gorillas.
Ugandan army spokesman Capt Peter Mugisa says the 600 Congolese soldiers are in the custody of the Ugandan military. He told the AP news agency they fear being massacred by the rebels if they return.
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Saudi Arabia's policy shift toward India helps nab terror suspects

NEW DELHI — For years, India watched helplessly as many of its most-wanted terrorism suspects traveled freely to Saudi Arabia from Pakistan with new identities and passports and without fear of arrest.
But things appear to have changed. Last week, Saudi Arabia deported an Indian accused of involvement in the terrorist attacks in Mumbai in 2008 that killed 166 people, including six Americans. At the same time, news came that Riyadh is likely to deport another accused terrorist to India in the next few weeks.
The shift in Saudi policy toward India is part of the kingdom’s broader foreign policy makeover since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States, analysts say.
“This deportation is really a first, and it signals Saudi Arabia’s changing attitude toward India as much as it also signals the internal changes in Saudi society,” said K.C. Singh, a former Indian diplomat. “It coincides with India aligning itself with American interests and India’s cautious distancing from Iran.”
Saudi Arabia also gives India a gateway to the entire Arab region, where it has little influence, compared with Pakistan. Saudi Arabia can assist India in its quest for energy in the region, improve its access to trading partners and help it address radicalism among Indian Muslims who migrate to the Middle East for lucrative work.
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Indian navy's IT system attacked by Chinese hackers

The nuclear submarine INS Arihant is based at the Eastern Naval Command. (Internet photo)

Sensitive data has been stolen from the computers of India's Eastern Naval Command by Chinese hackers, reports our sister Chinese-language newspaper Want Daily.

Bugs were reportedly planted by the hackers in three computers of the Eastern Naval Command based at Visakhapatnam for passing sensitive information through a Chinese IP address between this January and February.

In addition to serving as a base for the Indian navy's nuclear submarine INS Arihant to undergo its sea trials, the Eastern Naval Command is also responsible for the operations of the Indian navy in the South China Sea, a region where China has ongoing territorial disputes with several of its neighbors, though India is not one of them. A spokesman for the Indian navy stated that the incident has nothing to do with the Arihant, but that the materials stolen by the hackers are related to other projects of the Eastern Naval Command.

A board of inquiry has been set up to investigate six officers over the leak, the second case in which the IT systems of the Indian navy have come under attack this year. Four naval officers from the technical branch were tried by another board of inquiry earlier this year for sharing sensitive information on social networking sites including Facebook.

Source :http://www.wantchinatimes.com

Russia Nears Tank Ammo Deal With India

Russia is nearing a deal with India on manufacture and delivery of advanced tank ammunition
 

 

Russia is nearing a deal with India on manufacture and delivery of advanced tank ammunition, Rosoboronexport, a state-run arms exporter, said on Friday.
“The first round of negotiations on the delivery of 3UBK20 (Mango) tank ammunition has been completed and the second round - on its licensed manufacture in India - will start on Monday,” company deputy head Igor Sevastyanov said.
He did not specify the volume of deliveries, only saying it was “big.”
Russia has already started building a joint venture in India to manufacture rockets for Smerch multiple rocket launch systems, he said.
Another Rosoboronexport official, Viktor Komardin, earlier said Russian arms sales to India could be worth an estimated $3 billion a year.

Source :http://en.rian.ru

Russia Nears Tank Ammo Deal With India

Russia is nearing a deal with India on manufacture and delivery of advanced tank ammunition
 

 

Russia is nearing a deal with India on manufacture and delivery of advanced tank ammunition, Rosoboronexport, a state-run arms exporter, said on Friday.
“The first round of negotiations on the delivery of 3UBK20 (Mango) tank ammunition has been completed and the second round - on its licensed manufacture in India - will start on Monday,” company deputy head Igor Sevastyanov said.
He did not specify the volume of deliveries, only saying it was “big.”
Russia has already started building a joint venture in India to manufacture rockets for Smerch multiple rocket launch systems, he said.
Another Rosoboronexport official, Viktor Komardin, earlier said Russian arms sales to India could be worth an estimated $3 billion a year.

Source :http://en.rian.ru

Crisis time nears for India's cadet pilots

India's air force faces a pilot training crisis in two years unless Hindustan Aeronautics delivers its new Intermediate Jet Trainer on time.
Until 2009, every pilot -- fighter, transport and helicopter -- started training in the Hindustan Piston Trainer but the HPT-32 was grounded in 2009 after a series of crashes.
Cadets now start straight into operating the Kiran Mk-1, the intermediate jet trainer that is the mainstay Stage 2 pilot training aircraft.
But the two-seat Kiran, which was introduced in 1968, will complete its lifespan by 2015 and will have to be decommissioned, a report by India's NDTV said.
The new Intermediate Jet Trainer by HAL and known as Sitara first flew in 2003 and is slated to replace the Kirans.
Initial prototypes used a SNECMA Turbomeca Larzac 04-H-20 turbofan engine. Production versions will use an NPO Saturn AL-55I turbofan engine.
But the military is concerned that the IJT, of which around 200 will be needed, won't be ready in time.
"It isn't a panic situation yet but in another six to eight months, if the IJT program doesn't come to speed, we will have to hit the panic button," an unnamed senior air force officer told NDTV.
"We are keeping our fingers crossed and hope that Hindustan Aeronautics Limited will deliver this time," he said.
The NDTV report said the air force is cutting back on the number of flying hours per trainee pilot in the Kirans in order to extend the life of the aircraft.
The earlier versions of the subsonic low swept-wing Kiran have Rolls-Royce Viper turbo-jet engines while later versions have RR's Orpheus turbo-jets.
The minimum flying hours that a cadet is required to fly in Stage 1 training has been cut about 40 percent.
"The training schedule of cadets has been rescheduled so that we don't exhaust the available life span of the Kirans too quickly," an air force official told NDTV.
If HAL fails to deliver the IJT by 2015 then the air force may have to send its pilots overseas for their basic training, a situation "not acceptable," the air force official said.
Several of the IJT prototypes have had accidents, although none fatal.
During an Aero India exposition in 2007 an IJT prototype careened off the runway after its canopy inadvertently opened just as the pilot was getting airborne for an aerobatic sortie, a report in the Hindu newspaper said.
As a direct replacement for the turbo-prop HPT-32, India has order 75 Swiss Pilatus PC-7 MK II aircraft for around $520 million, NDTV said. The first aircraft are expected by the end of the year.
The arrival of the Swiss-made aircraft will reduce flying hours on the Kirans which nonetheless still will be nearing their decommissioning period.

Source :http://www.spacewar.com

Crisis time nears for India's cadet pilots

India's air force faces a pilot training crisis in two years unless Hindustan Aeronautics delivers its new Intermediate Jet Trainer on time.
Until 2009, every pilot -- fighter, transport and helicopter -- started training in the Hindustan Piston Trainer but the HPT-32 was grounded in 2009 after a series of crashes.
Cadets now start straight into operating the Kiran Mk-1, the intermediate jet trainer that is the mainstay Stage 2 pilot training aircraft.
But the two-seat Kiran, which was introduced in 1968, will complete its lifespan by 2015 and will have to be decommissioned, a report by India's NDTV said.
The new Intermediate Jet Trainer by HAL and known as Sitara first flew in 2003 and is slated to replace the Kirans.
Initial prototypes used a SNECMA Turbomeca Larzac 04-H-20 turbofan engine. Production versions will use an NPO Saturn AL-55I turbofan engine.
But the military is concerned that the IJT, of which around 200 will be needed, won't be ready in time.
"It isn't a panic situation yet but in another six to eight months, if the IJT program doesn't come to speed, we will have to hit the panic button," an unnamed senior air force officer told NDTV.
"We are keeping our fingers crossed and hope that Hindustan Aeronautics Limited will deliver this time," he said.
The NDTV report said the air force is cutting back on the number of flying hours per trainee pilot in the Kirans in order to extend the life of the aircraft.
The earlier versions of the subsonic low swept-wing Kiran have Rolls-Royce Viper turbo-jet engines while later versions have RR's Orpheus turbo-jets.
The minimum flying hours that a cadet is required to fly in Stage 1 training has been cut about 40 percent.
"The training schedule of cadets has been rescheduled so that we don't exhaust the available life span of the Kirans too quickly," an air force official told NDTV.
If HAL fails to deliver the IJT by 2015 then the air force may have to send its pilots overseas for their basic training, a situation "not acceptable," the air force official said.
Several of the IJT prototypes have had accidents, although none fatal.
During an Aero India exposition in 2007 an IJT prototype careened off the runway after its canopy inadvertently opened just as the pilot was getting airborne for an aerobatic sortie, a report in the Hindu newspaper said.
As a direct replacement for the turbo-prop HPT-32, India has order 75 Swiss Pilatus PC-7 MK II aircraft for around $520 million, NDTV said. The first aircraft are expected by the end of the year.
The arrival of the Swiss-made aircraft will reduce flying hours on the Kirans which nonetheless still will be nearing their decommissioning period.

Source :http://www.spacewar.com

Russia, India to Hold First Launch of BrahMos Submarine-Based Missile

Submarine-based version of the BrahMos Russian-Indian missile will be launched for the first time in Oct-Nov, 2012, the director of BrahMos Aerospace Sivathanu Pillai told ARMS-TASS at the 2-nd international engineering technology forum.


"We're going to hold the first launch of the submarine-adapted missile version by underwater testing platform in October or November", Dr. Pillai said.

According to him, the coming launch will be an important stage in the BrahMos program development because after that test Indian Navy will decide whether to arm India's prospective non-nuclear submarines with these missiles.

Representative of Rubin Central Design Bureau earlier told ITAR-TASS that Russian designers were ready to offer Indian Navy non-nuclear submarine Amur-1650 armed either with Club or BrahMos missile systems.


"So far, Indian partners have not brought up an issue of BrahMos integration into Amur-1650 submarine put up for Indian tender under the 75I prospective submarine program", said Andrei Baranov, deputy director general of Rubin bureau for foreign economic activity.

As for him, "the Amur-1650 submarine project is currently armed with Club attack missile system, well-known in Indian Navy and launched by horizontal torpedo tubes. But if Indian party wants the sub to be equipped with vertically-launched BrahMos attack missile system, Rubin bureau would amend the project", Baranov explained.

"BrahMos can be integrated into Amur-1650 as an additional compartment with vertical launch tubes", pointed out the design bureau's director.

"Amur and BrahMos are pretty compatible; we had worked on the sub's architecture in this regard. So, if Indian partners want to have the BrahMos-equipped submarine, that would strengthen chance of Rosoboronexport in the India's program 75I tender", emphasized Baranov.

Rosoboronexport will put up prospective non-nuclear submarine Amur-1650 powered by air-independent plant for Indian tender providing procurement and license production of 6 non-nuclear submarines.

Source : rusnavy

Russia, India to Hold First Launch of BrahMos Submarine-Based Missile

Submarine-based version of the BrahMos Russian-Indian missile will be launched for the first time in Oct-Nov, 2012, the director of BrahMos Aerospace Sivathanu Pillai told ARMS-TASS at the 2-nd international engineering technology forum.


"We're going to hold the first launch of the submarine-adapted missile version by underwater testing platform in October or November", Dr. Pillai said.

According to him, the coming launch will be an important stage in the BrahMos program development because after that test Indian Navy will decide whether to arm India's prospective non-nuclear submarines with these missiles.

Representative of Rubin Central Design Bureau earlier told ITAR-TASS that Russian designers were ready to offer Indian Navy non-nuclear submarine Amur-1650 armed either with Club or BrahMos missile systems.


"So far, Indian partners have not brought up an issue of BrahMos integration into Amur-1650 submarine put up for Indian tender under the 75I prospective submarine program", said Andrei Baranov, deputy director general of Rubin bureau for foreign economic activity.

As for him, "the Amur-1650 submarine project is currently armed with Club attack missile system, well-known in Indian Navy and launched by horizontal torpedo tubes. But if Indian party wants the sub to be equipped with vertically-launched BrahMos attack missile system, Rubin bureau would amend the project", Baranov explained.

"BrahMos can be integrated into Amur-1650 as an additional compartment with vertical launch tubes", pointed out the design bureau's director.

"Amur and BrahMos are pretty compatible; we had worked on the sub's architecture in this regard. So, if Indian partners want to have the BrahMos-equipped submarine, that would strengthen chance of Rosoboronexport in the India's program 75I tender", emphasized Baranov.

Rosoboronexport will put up prospective non-nuclear submarine Amur-1650 powered by air-independent plant for Indian tender providing procurement and license production of 6 non-nuclear submarines.

Source : rusnavy

Tejas completes weapon trials in Pokhran Ranges

Three platforms of India’s Light Combat Aircraft Tejas successfully completed advanced armament trials in the Pokhran ranges. Military sources confirmed to Express that this time the focus of the trials was locked on to specific modes of releasing various weapons. The current campaign saw Tejas testing various altitude and speed combinations of “critical nature”.
“During the just-concluded weapon trials at the forward areas of Pokhran ranges, practice, dumb and live bombs were released. A laser-guided bomb (LGB) was also tested. The trials are important as the platform is now being tested for its conversion as a fighting machine from a successful flying platform,” sources said. Different trials of sensors included testing of radio-altimeters, baro altitude, radars and laser. “Tejas limited series production (LSP) variants LSP-2, LSP-3 and LSP-5 are part of the current campaign. All modes of weapon releases and all types of sensors were tested. The campaign team is now heading for sea trials,” sources said. Tejas variants flew at speeds between 900 and 1,000 kmph during trials, logging 25 flights. Last September, Tejas had conducted weapon trials in Chandan and Pokhran ranges, and looked into accurate positions and target parameters.  The Tejas programme — with all platforms put together — has 1,903 flights, cloaking 1,120 hours. Its makers in Bangalore have to catch up with lost time in the programme, especially after its Initial Operational Clearance (IOC-1) was held in Jan 2011. “Currently we are looking into the major segments of IOC-2. We are hopeful of completing the IOC-2 parameters by the last quarter of this year,” sources said.

Source :http://newindianexpress.com

Tejas completes weapon trials in Pokhran Ranges

Three platforms of India’s Light Combat Aircraft Tejas successfully completed advanced armament trials in the Pokhran ranges. Military sources confirmed to Express that this time the focus of the trials was locked on to specific modes of releasing various weapons. The current campaign saw Tejas testing various altitude and speed combinations of “critical nature”.
“During the just-concluded weapon trials at the forward areas of Pokhran ranges, practice, dumb and live bombs were released. A laser-guided bomb (LGB) was also tested. The trials are important as the platform is now being tested for its conversion as a fighting machine from a successful flying platform,” sources said. Different trials of sensors included testing of radio-altimeters, baro altitude, radars and laser. “Tejas limited series production (LSP) variants LSP-2, LSP-3 and LSP-5 are part of the current campaign. All modes of weapon releases and all types of sensors were tested. The campaign team is now heading for sea trials,” sources said. Tejas variants flew at speeds between 900 and 1,000 kmph during trials, logging 25 flights. Last September, Tejas had conducted weapon trials in Chandan and Pokhran ranges, and looked into accurate positions and target parameters.  The Tejas programme — with all platforms put together — has 1,903 flights, cloaking 1,120 hours. Its makers in Bangalore have to catch up with lost time in the programme, especially after its Initial Operational Clearance (IOC-1) was held in Jan 2011. “Currently we are looking into the major segments of IOC-2. We are hopeful of completing the IOC-2 parameters by the last quarter of this year,” sources said.

Source :http://newindianexpress.com

Aviation trials of INS Vikramaditya to begin in mid-July

NEW DELHI: Russia would be deploying a MIG-35 and other aircraft for the trials of aviation facilities of INS Vikramaditya, the Russian aircraft carrier which is set to join the Indian navy by the year end.
The 'aviation facilities complex trials' of the aircraft carrier would begin sometime in the middle of July in the Barents Sea, navy sources said. A team of about 20 Indian navy aviation personnel including pilots are on their way to Russia to observe the trials, which would be carried out by a Russian crew.
The complex sea trials of the aircraft carrier, which started on June 7, comprise primarily of two aspects, the ship trials and the aviation facilities complex trials. The ship trials have already started. Over 500 Indian navy personnel under the command of the Captain Suraj Berry, the commissioning commanding officer of the ship, is present on board the aircraft carrier observing the trials. By the time India takes command of the ship, there would be around 2000 navy personnel to run Indian navy's biggest ship, with a displacement of 45000 tons.

Source :http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Aviation trials of INS Vikramaditya to begin in mid-July

NEW DELHI: Russia would be deploying a MIG-35 and other aircraft for the trials of aviation facilities of INS Vikramaditya, the Russian aircraft carrier which is set to join the Indian navy by the year end.
The 'aviation facilities complex trials' of the aircraft carrier would begin sometime in the middle of July in the Barents Sea, navy sources said. A team of about 20 Indian navy aviation personnel including pilots are on their way to Russia to observe the trials, which would be carried out by a Russian crew.
The complex sea trials of the aircraft carrier, which started on June 7, comprise primarily of two aspects, the ship trials and the aviation facilities complex trials. The ship trials have already started. Over 500 Indian navy personnel under the command of the Captain Suraj Berry, the commissioning commanding officer of the ship, is present on board the aircraft carrier observing the trials. By the time India takes command of the ship, there would be around 2000 navy personnel to run Indian navy's biggest ship, with a displacement of 45000 tons.

Source :http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Hypersonic Brahmos Missile to be Ready by 2017

BrahMos missile

The first prototype of a hypersonic cruise missile being jointly developed by Russia and India will be ready for flight testing in 2017, CEO of the Russian-Indian joint venture Brahmos Aerospace, Sivathanu Pillai, said on Wednesday.
Russia and India have recently agreed to develop hypersonic BrahMos 2 missile capable of flying at speeds of Mach 5-Mach 7.
“I think we will need about five years to develop the first fully-functional prototype [of the hypersonic missile],” Pillai said at an engineering technology forum near Moscow.
“We have already carried out a series of lab tests [of the missile] at the speed of 6.5 Mach,” he said.
Pillai said that the new missile will be made in three variants – ground-launched, airborne, and sea-launched.
The official said the new missiles will be supplied only to India and Russia, without exports to third countries.
Established in 1998, BrahMos Aerospace Ltd, a Russian-Indian joint venture currently manufactures BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles based on the Russian-designed NPO Mashinostroyenie 3M55 Yakhont (SS-N-26).
The BrahMos missile has a range of 290 km (180 miles) and can carry a conventional warhead of up to 300 kg (660 lbs). It can effectively engage targets from an altitude as low as 10 meters (30 feet) and has a top speed of Mach 2.8, which is about three times faster than the U.S.-made subsonic Tomahawk cruise missile.
Sea- and ground-launched versions have been successfully tested and put into service with the Indian Army and Navy.
The flight tests of the airborne version will be completed by the end of 2012.
The Indian Air Force is planning to arm 40 Su-30MKI Flanker-H fighters with BrahMos missiles.

Source :http://en.rian.ru

Hypersonic Brahmos Missile to be Ready by 2017

BrahMos missile

The first prototype of a hypersonic cruise missile being jointly developed by Russia and India will be ready for flight testing in 2017, CEO of the Russian-Indian joint venture Brahmos Aerospace, Sivathanu Pillai, said on Wednesday.
Russia and India have recently agreed to develop hypersonic BrahMos 2 missile capable of flying at speeds of Mach 5-Mach 7.
“I think we will need about five years to develop the first fully-functional prototype [of the hypersonic missile],” Pillai said at an engineering technology forum near Moscow.
“We have already carried out a series of lab tests [of the missile] at the speed of 6.5 Mach,” he said.
Pillai said that the new missile will be made in three variants – ground-launched, airborne, and sea-launched.
The official said the new missiles will be supplied only to India and Russia, without exports to third countries.
Established in 1998, BrahMos Aerospace Ltd, a Russian-Indian joint venture currently manufactures BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles based on the Russian-designed NPO Mashinostroyenie 3M55 Yakhont (SS-N-26).
The BrahMos missile has a range of 290 km (180 miles) and can carry a conventional warhead of up to 300 kg (660 lbs). It can effectively engage targets from an altitude as low as 10 meters (30 feet) and has a top speed of Mach 2.8, which is about three times faster than the U.S.-made subsonic Tomahawk cruise missile.
Sea- and ground-launched versions have been successfully tested and put into service with the Indian Army and Navy.
The flight tests of the airborne version will be completed by the end of 2012.
The Indian Air Force is planning to arm 40 Su-30MKI Flanker-H fighters with BrahMos missiles.

Source :http://en.rian.ru

India allows use of Iran ships for oil imports

Among other Asian buyers of Iran oil, Japan will provide sovereign guarantees for Iranian shipments, China has asked Iran to deliver the crude while South Korea will halt imports from July. (File photo)

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India has allowed state refiners to import Iranian oil, with Tehran arranging shipping and insurance, from July 1, keeping purchases of over 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) flowing after European sanctions hit insurance for the cargoes, government and industry sources said.

India, one of Iran’s biggest crude buyers, has just secured a waiver from U.S. sanctions which target Tehran’s nuclear ambitions by cutting imports over 20 percent.

But European sanctions that come into effect from July 1 ban insurers and reinsurers from covering shipments of Iranian oil, leaving buyers in Asia - Iran’s biggest market - struggling for cover.

Around 90 percent of the world’s tanker fleet is covered by Western-based protection and indemnity (P&I) clubs, which insure against personal injury and environmental clean-up claims.

Among other Asian buyers of Iran oil, Japan will provide sovereign guarantees for Iranian shipments, China has asked Iran to deliver the crude while South Korea will halt imports from July.

“Yes, we have allowed them to buy oil from Iran on CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight) basis,” said a senior shipping ministry official.

Unlike private refiners, India’s state-run companies need government permission to import oil on a CIF basis as federal policy requires them to favor Indian insurers and shippers by buying only on a Free on Board (FOB) basis.

India aims to buy 310,000 bpd of oil from Iran under contracts during the fiscal year from April to March, which includes 100,000 bpd of purchases by Essar Oil, the only private customer.

The United States earlier this month extended exemptions from its tough, new sanctions on Iran’s oil trade to seven more economies including India but China remains vulnerable.

Indian state insurers led by General Insurance Corp (GIC) had agreed to provide $50 million of cover for the ships carrying Iran crude from July but this has been delayed as the insurance regulator has not yet given its approval.

The Shipping Ministry has said it has “no objection” to refiners buying oil from Iran on a delivered basis “ f or 6 months with effect from July 1, 2012 or until GIC provides P&I/H&M (Hull and Machinery) cover or U.S., EU sanctions are lifted; whichever occurs earlier,” said a source privy to the letter.

A source at a refining firm also confirmed receipt of the letter.

Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals (MRPL) had already switched to insuring the oil with Iran Insurance Company, as its policy lapsed and local insurance companies refused to extend the cover, wary of the sanctions.

It remains unclear, however, how much crude Iran can actually export as it is using most of its vessels for storing crude as exports decline ahead of the new sanctions. The International Energy Agency estimates Tehran’s exports have fallen 40 percent since the start of the year.

In addition, the Iranian tanker fleet is mostly Very Large Crude Carriers whose draught is too deep for Indian ports.

Indian state-refiners buy Iranian oil in Aframax and Suezmax tankers.

In July, state-run Hindustan Petroleum Corp is planning to buy a Suezmax cargo while MRPL seeks to buy five Aframax cargoes. Purchase volumes fluctuate from month to month.

IOC, the country’s biggest refiner, was not planning to buy any cargo from Iran in July, a company source said earlier.

Source :http://english.alarabiya.net