India's state-run Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL) has made its first purchase of U.S.-produced Thunder Horse crude oil via a tender for mid-October delivery, an industry source said.
The state-run refiner placed an order to buy 1 million barrels of the oil with BP late on Thursday evening, the source said. The person declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter.
The deal comes as Indian refiners ramp up purchases of U.S. oil to compensate for the loss of Iranian oil supplies.
MRPL operates a 300,000 barrels per day coastal refinery in the southern Karnataka state. It bought U.S. oil last December when it purchased high-sulphur grade Southern Green Canyon for early February delivery.