India&#8217 S Russian Crude Imports Hit Five-Month High In Nov

(MENAFN- Kashmir Observer) New Delhi ~ India's imports of Russian crude oil rose 4 per cent in November to a five-month high of €2.6 billion, with a large part of the refined fuels produced from it being exported to Australia, a European think tank said.

India remained the second-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels in November, behind China, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).

It had spent EUR 2.5 billion on buying Russian oil in October.

China bought 47 per cent of Russia's crude exports in November, followed by India (38 per cent), Türkiye (6 per cent), and the EU (6 per cent).

“India's Russian crude imports recorded a 4 per cent month-on-month increase to the highest volumes in five months, even as overall import volumes remained stable,” CREA said.

“In fact, India's purchases may well record another increase in December, as cargoes loaded before the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions kicked in are delivered through the month.”

On October 22, the US imposed sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil, two of the largest oil producers in Russia, to cut off the Kremlin's resources for funding the Ukraine war.

The sanctions have resulted in companies like Reliance Industries, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), HPCL-Mittal Energy Ltd and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd halting imports for now. However, other refiners like Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) continue to buy from non-sanctioned Russian entities.

“While private refiners' imports suffered a marginal reduction, state-owned refineries increased their Russian crude volumes by 22 per cent month-on-month in November,” CREA said.

India, the world's third-largest oil importer, emerged as the biggest buyer of discounted Russian crude after Western countries shunned Moscow following its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Traditionally reliant on Middle Eastern oil, India dramatically increased Russian imports as sanctions and reduced European demand made the barrels available at steep discounts, pushing its share from under 1 per cent to nearly 40 per cent of total crude imports.

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