EU-sanctioned Indian refiner Nayara takes Microsoft to court over outage

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By Nidhi Verma

NEW DELHI (Reuters) -Russia-backed Indian refiner Nayara Energy Monday said it has started legal proceedings against Microsoft following the abrupt and unilateral suspension of critical services by the U.S.-headquartered software giant.

“Microsoft is currently restricting Nayara Energy’s access to its own data, proprietary tools, and products—despite these being acquired under fully paid-up licenses,” the refiner said in a statement.

Nayara, a major buyer of Russian oil, was recently sanctioned by the European Union as the refinery is majority-owned by Russian entities, including oil major Rosneft.

Microsoft last Tuesday halted services for Nayara Energy, sources familiar with the matter said, adding that the company’s employees’ Outlook email accounts and Teams have not been working.

Microsoft declined to comment on the issue.

Nayara Energy has filed a petition before Delhi High Court seeking an interim injunction and resumption of services to safeguard its rights and ensure continued access to essential digital infrastructure, the company said.

It said Microsoft had not consulted the company before withdrawing the services.

“This action has been taken unilaterally, without prior notice, consultation or recourse, and under the guise of compliance,” it said.

Since the imposition of EU sanctions against Nayara, at least two tankers skipped loading refined products from Vadinar and one crude tanker carrying Russian Urals was diverted.

Its chief executive resigned and the company had to appoint Sergey Denisov as CEO.

(Reporting by Nidhi Verma, Editing by Louise Heavens)