The Centre is planning to extend restrictions on the export of diesel and petrol after the end of this financial year which ends on March 31. The move is to ensure the domestic availability of refined fuels, news agency Reuters reported citing government sources with direct knowledge of the matter.
According to Reuters, this move will discourage refiners from buying Russian fuel to re-export it to countries that have stopped the purchase of Russian oil after the invasion of Ukraine. Some private companies have been re-exporting Russian oil to foreign countries including those in Europe.
The world's third-largest oil consumer imposed a windfall tax on refined fuel exports last year and mandated the oil companies to sell the equivalent of 50 per cent of their petrol exports and 30 per cent of their diesel export in India in the current fiscal year ends.
According to the report, the move was introduced after refiners like Reliance Industries and Nayara Energy gained major profits from buying discounted Russian oil and increased their fuel exports. This forced state refiners to fill the void and meet demand at home by selling fuels at government-capped lower prices.
The government sources told the news agency that India's oil and commerce ministries are discussing the extension of the order beyond this fiscal year.
Meanwhile, India's imports from Russia rose five-fold to $41.56 billion during the April-February period of the financial year 2022-23 on the account of increased crude oil imports, according to the data from the commerce ministry. During the April-February period, Russia became India's fourth-largest import source.
India’s import of Russian crude oil has been increasing steadily over the last few months. Russia, which had a market share of 0.2 per cent in India's import list before the start of the Russia-Ukraine war last year, has taken its share to 35 per cent share.