India’s imports of Russian crude hit a record high in July, leveraging discounted barrels to counter geopolitical shipping challenges and embedding Moscow deeper into its refining system amid global tensions.
India’s appetite for Russian crude kept climbing in July, with imports reaching a fresh high in both value and volume as refiners continued to lean on discounted barrels to anchor supply. The Hindu BusinessLine, citing data from the Finland-based Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, said purchases were worth about $6.4 billion, or roughly ₹61,000 crore, last month, up from June’s previous peak. Kpler data cited by Moneycontrol and The Print likewise showed Russian crude accounting for more than half of India’s oil imports, underscoring how firmly Moscow has become embedded in the country’s refining system.
The latest surge comes as tensions in key shipping lanes have complicated trade flows from the Middle East. Analysts quoted in the reports said the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and disruptions around the Bab-el-Mandeb have strengthened Russia’s role as a supply hedge for India. That has helped keep crude moving even as Indian refiners diversified their buying across suppliers such as the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, according to Kpler figures reported by Moneycontrol.
CREA said the increase in July was broad-based, with gains at smaller and mid-sized terminals offsetting weaker flows through the two biggest hubs, Jamnagar and Paradip. It said imports rose sharply at HPCL Mittal Energy’s Mundra facility, Indian Oil’s Vadinar SMPL terminal and Mumbai, while Jamnagar was unchanged and Paradip fell. At the same time, Russian oil product exports fell to a record low, reflecting pressure on some export routes and continued drone attacks on the Tuapse terminal.
The value of India’s Russian fuel trade also kept Moscow among New Delhi’s top energy partners. CREA said India was the second-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels in July, with crude making up the vast bulk of purchases. It also noted that Russia’s Urals crude still traded at a sizeable discount to Brent even after prices eased only modestly, while the EU’s lower cap on Russian oil remained in force. The report further said shipments from refineries processing Russian crude continued to reach sanctioning countries, despite EU restrictions on products made from Russian feedstock.
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