Tehran's recent warning to New Delhi about a possible halt in oil supplies to India due to continued overdue payments was not an official warning by the Iranian oil authorities, an informed source at the Iranian oil ministry said, Fars News Agency reported.
"The warning sent to the Indian side was not a formal letter from the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC)," the source told FNA on the condition of anonymity.
"Meantime" the source stressed "the warning didn't mean a full stop in oil exports to India since it has been mentioned in the letter that supply of crude to India might come to a halt only in August in case overdue payments are not made."
The source further noted that the Indian side is yet to answer the letter.
Earlier, Iranian oil officials rejected earlier Media report claiming that Iran has threatened to stop crude oil supplies to India if New Delhi does not resolve a seven-month-old payment dispute.
Iran is the second largest crude supplier to the country after Saudi Arabia and accounts for about 12% of India's annual oil needs.
The question of crude oil payments to Iran came into focus in December, when India's central bank stopped payments to Tehran through the Asian Clearing Union.
India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Iran, Myanmar, Bhutan, the Maldives and Sri Lanka are members of the union. Washington believes Tehran is using the financial clearing house to evade international sanctions.
India then made some overdue payments to Iran through Germany's Deutsche Bundesbank. But, according to media reports, Germany stopped accepting money from India for Iranian oil payments following criticism from the US and Israeli governments.