State-owned Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals (MRPL)could be adversely impacted if the crisis arising out of payment for crude oil import from Iran does not get resolved soon,ratings agency ICRA said today. "MRPL's refining throughout could be impacted as it tries to find alternative sources to replace crude oil imported from Iran," the ratings agency said in a note. MRPL imports 7.6 million tonne annually from National Iranian Oil company which amounts to a staggering 60 per cent of its total requirement while its current inventory levels will suffice only for a month,it said. ICRA,however,said that there will not be an immediate impact on any Indian downstream oil companies because of Reserve Bank of India's move to settle payments for oil and other imports from Iran outside the Asian Clearing Union (ACU) mechanism as a result of sanctions on Iran by US and Europe. "Indian oil refining companies will now have to find an alternative mode for making payments," it said,adding it is not clear as to when the issue gets resolved. ICRA currently has a LAAA (stable)/A1+/IrAAA rating on MRPL. Officials from Iran's central bank met senior RBI brass last week to discuss alternatives for payments towards oil imports by India.
