Indian energy firms’ $400 million stuck in Russia, says official

New Delhi: India’s energy companies are unable to reap dividends worth as much as $400 million from their assets in Russia, a senior Oil Ministry official said Saturday.

State-run companies such as ONGC Videsh Ltd have stakes in Russian oil and gas fields. But dividends from those assets are stuck because of a logjam in Russia’s banking channels and the country’s inability to pay in dollars amid US and European Union sanctions.

Separately, India has also faced challenges in buying Russian crude above the price cap. India will find ways to pay, though, said the official, who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter.

ONGC Videsh’s oil and gas output is expected to return to growth this year after operations ramped back up at Sakhalin-1, a project caught up in the fallout from Russia’s war in Ukraine, Bloomberg News reported previously.