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Impending nuclear deal with West makes Iran talk tough with India

Updated: May 20, 2015 10:52 IST
Impending nuclear deal with West makes Iran talk tough with India - The Hindu

The special status enjoyed by India, as one of only a handful of countries willing to do business with Iran, is a thing of past now.
Iranian trade negotiators have become more assertive with Indian counterparts as hopes rise of international sanctions on Tehran easing later this year, sources said, and Indian companies fear they may lose business as more countries bid for projects.

The push back from the Iranians came as a surprise to India, which has enjoyed special dispensation from Tehran as one of only a handful of countries willing to do business with it while it faced Western economic sanctions.

Under a tentative framework agreement reached between six major powers and Tehran in April 2015, Iran agreed to limit its nuclear activity in return for sanctions relief. A final deal could be reached by June 30.

That prospect appears to have emboldened Iran, said sources familiar with trade negotiations with India, including in its handling of a sizeable deal to import railway tracks.

The $233 million contract, signed in October 2014, was for India’s State Trading Corporation (STC) to facilitate exports of rail tracks from SAIL and Jindal Steel and Power to Iran’s railways.

But Iran told Indian negotiators that it had offers from other countries, including Turkey, to supply the equipment at a cheaper cost, the sources said.

Last month, New Delhi sent Commerce Secretary Rajeev Kher to persuade Tehran to adhere to the original terms, but he came back “empty handed”, according to one of the sources.

“They are no longer the same Iranians that came to us last year for signing the deal,” the source said. “They were polite this time, but had an upper hand in the negotiations.”

India has cut the value of the deal by about 7 per cent to $217 million, the sources said. They added that they worry the Iranians may seek further cuts, and could split the order with other countries.

STC chairman Rahim Khaleel declined to comment. Mr. Kher, Iran Rail, SAIL and Jindal Steel did not respond to requests for comment.

It was not immediately clear whether other countries that trade with Iran have seen a similar hardening in Tehran’s stance. Oil refinery sources in Japan said they had not seen any change yet.

‘Wait your turn’

Iran said it wanted to renegotiate the rail contract, because the euro had declined against the dollar and steel and iron ore prices had fallen significantly since the deal was first struck in 2014.

Indian negotiators said price and currency risks were incorporated into the original agreement, but they had to give in, the sources said.

It was a large order for the Indians and the spectre of competition from other suppliers loomed large, they added.

“Earlier they were standing in line to offer us deals,” one source said. Now, they ask the Indians to “wait in line and wait your turn”.

The supply contract is expected to kick off within six months, and, under the renewed terms, India will supply 250,000 tonnes of rails to Iran over 18 months through STC.

The shift in Iran’s stance has also been visible in the vital energy sector.

The National Iranian Oil Company has told Indian refiners, for example, that it would withdraw some of the discounts and free shipping it had been offering them on crude sales to maintain its oil output, oil industry sources said.

The sources added that the state oil firm anticipated ramping up exports once the nuclear deal was finalised, after which there would be many more buyers for its crude.

In 2013, the then Iranian Oil Minister Rostam Qasemi visited India to offer development rights for a gas field on a production sharing basis, after getting special permission from parliament on a deal that would normally contravene Iranian law.

India did not sign the deal for the Farzad B gas field, as international sanctions barred investment in Iran’s hydrocarbon sector, an Iranian diplomat said.

Now, Tehran has withdrawn the offer, according to Iranian media. Iran plans to auction the field instead, one report said.

Business is business
 
The Language used by these chini chamchas gives away their nationality. No amount of Chinese looking names gonna hide your true self.
India exploited Iran and now its time for Persian revenge against Bharat, Timur style.
 
India exploited Iran and now its time for Persian revenge against Bharat, Timur style.

You must some real racial hatred for Iranians by suggesting Timur's name

Considering Timur massacred innocent Persian civilians in the city of Isfahan :cry:


As someone hailing from China which was victim of racial extermination by Japanese troops in Nanking and Unit 731, one would expect you to be empathize with suffering of Iranians.

But alas, racial hatred towards Iranians gets the best of you :sick:
 
http://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...ran-resolves-says-jaitley/article19865434.ece
ARUNJAITLEY

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. | Photo Credit: Reuters

Washington, October 15, 2017 13:00 IST
Updated: October 15, 2017 13:00 IST

http://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...ran-resolves-says-jaitley/article19865434.ece

India is Iran’s second biggest oil buyer after China and was among a few which had continued to import crude.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has said that most of the pending issues with Iran particularly relating to the oil payment have been resolved.

Mr. Jaitley, who is in Washington on a week-long visit to the U.S. to attend the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, made the remarks after a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Masoud Karbasian.

“There were several pending issues with Iran particularly relating to the oil payment. Most of them have been resolved,” he told reporters on Saturday.

India is Iran’s second biggest oil buyer after China and was among a few which had continued to import crude despite Western sanctions against Tehran.

Mr. Jaitley said India has a very stable relationship with Iran.

“It’s very strategic for us, because the Chabahar port is not only going to service Iran, but also going to service Afghanistan,” he said.

India and Iran had in 2003 agreed to develop strategic Chabahar port, located in the Sistan-Balochistan province in the energy-rich Persian Gulf nation’s southern coast. The port is easily accessed from India’s western coast, bypassing Pakistan.

An agreements on the Chabahar port was inked by the two sides in May 2016 after detailed discussions between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.

As per the pact, India is to equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of $ 85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of $ 22.95 million on a 10-year lease.

Ownership of equipment will be transferred to Iranian side on completion of the 10-year period or for an extended period, based on mutual agreement.

The development of the port will help Indian companies enhance engagement in Iran and gain access to Afghanistan & Central Asia. In the long run Chahabar will also serve as the point of origin for the proposed Iran-Oman-India pipeline.

According to Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg, the Iranian minister did not raise the issue of US President Donald Trump’s new Iran policy during his meeting with Jaitley.

“We discussed more on Chabahar port, the trilateral agreement and expediting that kind of work,” Garg said.
 
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