Two sources with knowledge of the matter said that Reliance Industries, a private refiner in India, is looking to secure oil as Western pressures on India to reduce its Russian oil purchases.

Sources said that Reliance representatives were in talks with the U.S. State Department and Treasury Department to get the authorization. Washington and Caracas are progressing in their negotiations to ship 50,000,000 barrels of crude oil after the capture by the U.S. of President Nicolas Maduro.

The Indian conglomerate received licenses in the past from Washington to import Venezuelan crude for its world-largest refining complex.

According to PDVSA internal records, Venezuela's oil firm PDVSA delivered Reliance 4 crude cargoes or 63,000 barrels of oil per day during the first four months 2025. Washington suspended the majority of licenses for PDVSA's partners in March and April, and threatened Venezuelan oil buyers with tariffs.

Reliance's final cargo of Venezuelan crude oil arrived in India on May 20, 2025.

Reliance announced on Thursday that it would consider buying?Venezuelan oil if the sale of crude to non-U.S. customers is permitted by U.S. regulations.

Reliance's request for approval to resume purchasing was not responded to immediately by the company or U.S. Treasury Department.

Chevron Vitol Trafigura, and other oil firms are competing for control and licenses over Venezuelan oil. Donald Trump will meet with oil executives in the White House on Friday. Millions of barrels of crude are stuck in tanks and vessels on the South American producer's land.

Officials from the United States have stated that they will control Venezuelan oil imports indefinitely and that some oil will flow to buyers outside of the U.S. U.S. president Donald?Trump stated that China, the biggest buyer of Venezuelan crude oil, would not be denied barrels.

One source said that Reliance would be willing to purchase Venezuelan oil from U.S. firms and other companies with drilling rights in Venezuela, if the crude was offered at attractive prices.

Venezuelan oil could replace some Russian oil supplies for India. Reliance, the largest Indian oil buyer, has said that it will not be receiving any cargoes of Russian crude in this month because India is being pressured by Trump to stop buying Russian barrels.

Reliance has two refineries in Gujarat, west of Mumbai, which have a combined capacity for about 1.4 millions bpd crude oil. This allows it to process heavier and cheaper crudes, such as Venezuelan Merey.

Reliance has a longstanding relationship with PDVSA, and India was Venezuela's third-largest market before U.S. sanctions were imposed on the oil trade. It took in around 400,000 barrels per day.

(source: Reuters)