India's Biggest Refiner Partners with World's Top Crude Trader

India’s biggest refiner, state-held Indian Oil Corporation Ltd, is preparing to launch in early 2026 a trading joint venture with the world’s biggest independent oil trader, Vitol, to trade crude and fuels, a source familiar with the plans told Reuters on Wednesday. Indian Oil, which together with its unit Chennai Petroleum holds about 31% of all of India’s refining capacity, had discussed a venture with supermajors BP and TotalEnergies and commodity trading giant Trafigura, before picking Vitol for the new trading JV, according…