Letter from India: Russian imports remain dominant

India’s newfound reliance on discounted Russian crude continues to grow

Russia was India’s largest crude oil supplier in December for the third consecutive month, displacing traditional exporters Iraq and Saudi Arabia and hitting a fresh volume record. Russian imports reached 1.19mn bl/d over the last month of 2022, accounting for more than 25pc of India’s total and surpassing the previous high of 942,694bl/d registered in June, according to data from energy analytics firm Vortexa. The Russia-Ukraine conflict has dramatically changed from where Indian refiners source their crude. Before Moscow’s invasion of its neighbour, more than 60pc of India’s crude oil imports originated from the Middle East, with North America accounting for 14pc, West Africa 12pc, Latin A