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After the war between Iran and Israel in the Middle East and the oil supply chain being affected, India has once again turned towards Russia. According to Bloomberg report, India is planning to increase the purchase of crude oil from Russia to meet its needs.
In the last few days, the supply of oil through the Strait of Hormuz has almost come to a standstill, due to which officials of government refineries and petroleum ministry held an emergency meeting in Delhi and started looking for alternatives.
India’s preparation to buy Russian oil tankers standing in the sea
According to the report, India is considering buying Russian oil cargoes that are currently lying near Indian waters or in Asian waters. According to data, at present about 95 lakh barrels of Russian crude oil is loaded in tankers and is in waiting mode around Asian countries. In case of shortage in supply, India can receive these tankers immediately, which will reduce both the time and cost of transportation.
India is the world’s third largest consumer of crude oil. India imports about 88% of its total crude oil requirement from abroad.
Why is Russian oil important for India?
Cheaper Option: Russia offers oil to India at a discount from benchmark prices.
Supply Security: If tensions in the Middle East stop supplies from the Strait of Hormuz, Russia is a safe option.
Impact on economy: Due to availability of cheap oil, the prices of petrol and diesel remain stable in the country and inflation remains under control.
Russian oil purchases reached a record low in February
Due to US pressure and strictness of sanctions, India had reduced the purchase of oil from Russia in the last few months. India bought only 1 million barrels of oil per day from Russia in February, the lowest level since September 2022. However, now in view of the war situation in the Middle East and the shortage of crude oil in the global market, India has indicated to change its strategy.
America had imposed additional tariff on buying oil from Russia
Last month, an interim trade agreement was discussed between India and the US. There was talk of reducing the tariff imposed on India from 50% to 18%. In fact, half of this 50% tariff was a ‘punitive duty’ for countries that were buying oil from Russia.
US President Donald Trump had removed the 25% tariff imposed on India through an executive order. Trump had claimed that he gave this exemption because India has agreed to stop buying oil from Russia. However, India has never publicly accepted any such commitment. Russia has also said that it sees no reason to change India’s stance.
The US Supreme Court had canceled the Trump tariff, calling it unconstitutional.
Recently, the US Supreme Court had canceled the tariffs imposed by President Trump on many countries, calling them unconstitutional. After this, the Trump administration has decided to impose 15% tariff on imports into America, which is the legal maximum limit.
Now India’s Oil Ministry and External Affairs Ministry are jointly negotiating with America so that India does not have to face punitive tariffs again on buying oil from Russia.
India is the third largest buyer of Russian oil
In December 2025, India stood third in purchasing oil from Russia. Turkey became the second largest buyer. Turkey bought oil worth 2.6 billion euros. India bought oil worth 2.3 billion euros (about Rs 23,000 crore) from Russia in December. In November, India had bought oil worth 3.3 billion euros (Rs 34,700 crore).
China still remains the biggest buyer, it bought oil worth 6 billion euros i.e. about Rs 63,100 crore from Russia in December. The biggest reason for India’s reduced purchases was Reliance Industries. Reliance’s Jamnagar Refinery almost halved its oil purchases from Russia.
Earlier, Reliance used to take its entire supply from Russian company Rosneft, but due to fear of US sanctions, now companies are buying less oil from Russia. Apart from Reliance, government oil companies also reduced oil purchases from Russia by about 15% in December.
Read this news also…
Hormuz will not be closed, but petrol and diesel may become expensive: prices may increase by ₹ 4-5; Gold expected to rise by ₹30 thousand; Impact of America-Iran war
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said that at present there is no intention to close the Hormuz Strait. A day before, when Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in an American attack, there were fears that Iran might close Hormuz.
If Hormuz was closed, the price of crude oil could have increased from $ 70 per barrel to $ 120 per barrel. Its effect could be visible on petrol and diesel in India. However, experts still believe that the risk of increase in crude oil prices still remains. Read the full news…
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