TEHRAN – India’s Essar Oil has paid about 2 billion euros ($2.5 billion) of its oil dues to Iran and still owes the country about $616 million, Reuters reported quoting Essar Oil’s Chief Executive B. Anand as saying on Thursday.

The new Rosneft-led management, as part of the $12.9 billion acquisition of Essar Oil, took the decision to repay the dues owed to Iran.

The outstanding payments stem from delays in paying for Iranian oil when the country was under international sanctions over its nuclear program. The sanctions ended in 2016.

Essar Oil aims to buy 120,000 barrels per day (bpd) of oil from Iran in 2018/19, the same as the previous year, Anand said, adding his company was receiving the same concessions as state-owned Indian refiners for Iranian oil purchases.

Essar operates a 400,000 bpd Vadinar refinery in western Gujarat state and sells about 60 percent of its refined fuels in local markets.

EF/MA