Indian contracts for Urals crude - the type most commonly exported by Russia - for March, April, May and June and projections for deliveries in July and August (around 66.5 million barrels in all) - amounts to more than the quantity purchased during all of 2021, according to Kpler.

 

According to tanker tracking data in May, Russian oil imports are now the 2nd largest source for India after imports from Iraq, according to data analytics firm Kpler.

 

China and India are continuing to increase imports of Russian oil in a dramatic reshaping of global trade in energy, according to the latest industry data. 

 

India is looking to double down on its Russian oil imports with state-owned refiners eager to take more heavily-discounted supplies from Rosneft PJSC as international buyers turn down dealings with Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine, reported Bloomberg.

 

State processors are collectively working on finalizing and securing new 6 month supply contracts for Russian crude to India. Cargoes are being sought on a delivered basis from Rosneft, with the seller set to handle shipping and insurance matters, they said.

 

India, an oil-hungry country of 1.4 billion people, has guzzled nearly 60 million barrels of Russian oil in 2022 so far, compared with 12 million barrels in all of 2021, according to commodity data firm Kpler. Shipments to other Asian countries, like China, have also increased in recent months but to a lesser extent.

 

India is the world's 3rd largest consumer of oil and over 80% of it is imported.

 

Historically, Russia has not been a major supplier to India. In January and February this year, India did not import any crude from Russia at all. But in March, imports began to rise.

 

Last year, India's top 3 suppliers were in the Middle East, followed by the US and Nigeria. Only around 2% of total oil imports (12 million barrels of Urals crude) came from Russia, according to Kpler.