The Indian government is ready to clear the $6.5 billion oil dues to Iran but is waiting for a proper banking channel to be put in place, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said on Friday.
He noted that “$6.5 billion is due to Iran...but they have to create a banking channel. They are looking into it and we are cooperating with them,” the Economic Times quoted him as saying.
He said he had discussed the payments issue with the governor of the Central Bank of Iran and other officials during his recent visit to Tehran.
“They want the money in euros, so there has to be a European bank for this exchange but they have to clarify in which bank they want to take the money into. Some banks are coming forward to receive the Iranian money, though,” the minister said.
The dues to Iran mounted after western nations and the UN imposed economic sanctions on Tehran over the dispute over its nuclear energy program. India had been paying Iran in rupees during the peak of the embargo.
“Very soon, we will be developing a payment gateway or banking clearance mechanism for the payment,” he said.
