India will lease half of its southern Padur oil storage site to Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), sources told Reuters.

Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves (ISPRL) will sign an initial agreement with ADNOC on November 19 in the attendance of Indian oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan, three sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.

The agreement will allow ADNOC to sell crude to Indian refiners, but the Indian government has the right to use it first in emergencies without a need to pay for imports.

“We will sign a memorandum of understanding with ADNOC to fill two compartments in Padur along the same lines as the Mangalore cavern,” said one source with direct knowledge of the matter without revealing his name.