State-run oil marketing companies (OMCs) have placed orders for importing crude oil from Iran next month when US sanctions on Tehran are due to take effect, Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said on Tuesday.

Reiterating India's stand, Pradhan told reporters here on the sidelines of the 3rd India Energy Forum that the current surge in global crude oil prices was more a result of the market sentiments being hit by geopolitical factors which include Iran and said there were no issues of availability.