India's imports of Russian oil hit a nine-month high in April, driven by a resumption of shipments on non-sanctioned tankers operated by Sovcomflot, Russia's largest shipping company. This information comes from tanker data obtained from shipping and trade sources, according to news agency Reuters.
Indian refiners had temporarily halted imports of Russian oil on Sovcomflot tankers after the company and its 14 tankers were designated by Washington in February for breaching Western sanctions. These sanctions, imposed in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, include price caps on oil and oil products loaded at Russian ports, aimed at reducing Moscow's oil revenue used to fund the war.
As the world's third-largest oil importer and consumer, India has become the top client for Russian seaborne oil. In April, the first month of the fiscal year 2024/25, Indian refiners imported nearly 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) of Russian oil, an increase of about 8.2 per cent over the previous month. This expanded Russia's share in India's oil imports to approximately 38 per cent from 32 per cent in March.
Overall, India's oil imports in April totalled 4.8 million bpd, a decrease of 6.5 per cent from March but slightly higher than April 2023. Russia maintained its position as India's top oil supplier, followed by Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
The increased Russian oil imports reduced Indian refiners' purchases of oil from Iraq and Saudi Arabia, decreasing the Middle Eastern oil share in India's imports to 41 per cent in April from 46 per cent in March. Consequently, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' (OPEC) share in India's crude basket fell to 46 per cent from 53 per cent in March.
Higher Russian oil imports also boosted the share of oil from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries, including Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, in India's imports to 41 per cent in April from 37 per cent in March.