New data from analytics firm Kpler released on Monday showed that Russian oil exports to India hit a new record last month, marking ten consecutive months of growth.
According to the report, authored by Viktor Katona, head of crude analysis at Kpler, in June daily shipments from Russia to India rose to 2.2 million barrels per day (bpd).
Russia had supplied 46% of India’s total oil imports, up from under 2% of India’s total imports prior to the imposition of sanctions by Western nations limiting the markets available to Russia to move its crude oil.
Russian-sourced crude also increased the share of oil supplied to India by Commonwealth of Independent States members, such as Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, according to the data.
Kpler pointed out however that it is expected there will be a dip in Indian crude imports next month due to infrastructure issues with their refineries, which may lead to limitations on India’s ability to process heavy Russian crude.
India’s deliveries from their traditional Middle Eastern suppliers such as Saudi Arabia and Iraq have been diminishing as New Delhi has been rushing to take advantage of massive Russian discounts on its crude as Russia sought to encourage buyers after Western nations imposed a $60-per-barrel price cap on its crude oil products.
As OPEC watches India shift its purchases toward Moscow, the shift is likely to become more pronounced and permanent as time goes on, now that Russia’s largest oil producer, Rosneft, and the largest refiner in India, Indian Oil Corp, signed an agreement in March which will significantly increase the amount of oil and diversity of oil grades which will be delivered to India in the future.
As Asia’s third largest economy, and the third largest oil importer and consumer in the world, India has been steadily increasing its purchases of Russian crude oil as prices have dropped following sanctions levied on the Kremlin following the onset of the military conflict in Ukraine. It appears the more the West attempts to block the sales of Russian crude to allies, the more this trend will continue.
