Quad launches major initiative to steady supply of critical minerals
The decision on rolling out the "Quad Critical Minerals Initiative" was announced after a meeting of foreign ministers of the member nations of the grouping in the US capital on Tuesday.
A readout of the meeting said the new initiative is an "ambitious expansion" of the Quad partnership to strengthen economic security and collective resilience by collaborating on securing and diversifying critical mineral supply chains.
The meeting was attended by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and her Japanese counterpart Takeshi Iwaya.
"This new flagship initiative, alongside the high-impact programmes and outcomes the Quad is realising, will enable our four countries to bring economic opportunity and prosperity to our people and the region," it said.
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Time of India
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Despite having lost market share to Russia in recent years, proximity and reliability of West Asian suppliers—particularly Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and the UAE—mean that they will remain core contributors to India's crude slate. In June, Iraq had an 18.5 per cent share in India's oil imports, followed by Saudi Arabia with 12.1 per cent, and the UAE with 10.2 per cent. The US retained its position as India's third-largest supplier of crude oil in June, with import volumes of around 303,000 bpd and a market share of 6.3 per cent. According to Kpler's analysis, oil imports from West Asia are expected to stabilise in the 35–40 per cent range, and meanwhile India is expected to sustain its diversification efforts by tapping additional volumes from Africa, Latin America, and the US to optimise refinery economics, balance geopolitical exposure, and enhance energy security. Geopolitical shifts, freight economics, and refinery economics are expected to continue shaping India's crude sourcing decisions. While desirable for crude blending and refinery optimisation, US crude remains relatively high-cost for Indian refiners due to higher freight and longer voyages, and has so far seen limited scope for expansion. Unless freight costs become more favourable or a diversification push is triggered by instability in other regions, industry watchers say it is unlikely that imports from the US and Latin America would grow substantially in the short term. Sukalp Sharma is a Senior Assistant Editor with The Indian Express and writes on a host of subjects and sectors, notably energy and aviation. He has over 13 years of experience in journalism with a body of work spanning areas like politics, development, equity markets, corporates, trade, and economic policy. He considers himself an above-average photographer, which goes well with his love for travel. ... Read More
