Russia becomes India's largest oil supplier in October: Report
India imported 68,600 bpd of Russian oil in March while it increased to 266,617 bpd in the following month and peaked to 942,694 bpd in June. But in June, Iraq was India's top supplier with 1.04 million bpd of oil. In that month, Russia became India's second biggest supplier.
FollowA data from energy cargo tracker Vortexa has revealed that Russia has become India's top oil supplier in October, surpassing traditional sellers Saudi Arabia and Iraq.
Russia, which made up for just 0.2 per cent of all oil imported by India in the year to March 31, 2022, supplied 935,556 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil to India in October, the highest ever. It now makes up for 22 per cent of India's total crude imports, ahead of Iraq's 20.5 per cent and Saudi Arabia's 16 per cent.
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India's appetite for Russian oil swelled ever since it started trading on discount as the West shunned it to punish Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine.
According to Vortexa, an energy intelligence firm, India imported just 36,255 barrels per day of crude oil from Russia in December 2021 as compared to 1.05 million bpd from Iraq and 952,625 bpd from Saudi Arabia. Following two months, there were no imports from Russia. However, they resumed in March, soon after the Ukraine war broke out in late February.
India imported 68,600 bpd of Russian oil in March while it increased to 266,617 bpd in the following month and peaked to 942,694 bpd in June. But in June, Iraq was India's top supplier with 1.04 million bpd of oil. In that month, Russia became India's second biggest supplier.
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Speaking to reporters, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said, "In FY22 (April 2021 to March 2022), the purchases of Russian oil was 0.2 per cent (of all oil imported by India). We still buy only a quarter of what Europe buys in one afternoon."
"We owe a moral duty to our consumers. We have a 1.34 billion population and we have to ensure that they are supplied with energy...whether it's petrol, diesel," he added.
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India has also remained non-committal on a plan proposed by the G7 group of nations (UK, US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan) to cap the price of oil purchased from Russia as a means of limiting Moscow's revenue. Puri said India will examine the proposal as and when it is finalised and communicated.
(With inputs from PTI)
