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India remained the world’s second-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels in May, importing an estimated €5.8 billion ($6.7 billion) worth of Russian hydrocarbons as refiners increased crude purchases from Moscow, according to a report by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).
The report said crude oil accounted for about 83% of India’s imports from Russia during the month, valued at €4.8 billion. Oil products and coal imports were valued at €550 million and €429 million, respectively.
According to CREA, India’s total crude import volumes rose 8% month-on-month in May, driven partly by a 21% increase in Russian crude imports.
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Refining hubs record higher Russian crude arrivals
Some of India’s largest refining centres reported notable increases in Russian crude arrivals.
Volumes unloaded at the Vadinar refinery in Gujarat rose 36% from April levels, while deliveries to the Jamnagar refining complex increased 14%, CREA said.
State-run refiners also expanded purchases after resuming imports earlier this year. The New Mangalore and Visakhapatnam refineries, which had halted Russian crude imports at the end of November 2025, continued buying Russian oil after restarting purchases in March.
Russian crude deliveries to New Mangalore increased 13% month-on-month in May, while imports at Visakhapatnam jumped 42%.
The Paradip refinery in Odisha also unloaded its highest volume of Russian crude in two years, highlighting the continued appeal of discounted Russian barrels for Indian refiners despite evolving geopolitical and sanctions-related pressures.
Russia remains a key supplier
India emerged as one of the largest buyers of Russian oil after Western sanctions and trade restrictions reshaped global energy flows following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
Indian refiners have consistently increased purchases of discounted Russian crude, helping offset higher energy costs while improving refining margins and exports of petroleum products.
The latest figures suggest Russian oil continues to occupy a significant share of India’s crude import basket even as New Delhi diversifies supplies from West Asia, Africa and the United States.
CREA said China purchased 50% of Russia’s crude exports in May, followed by India at 36%, Turkiye at 6%, and the European Union at 5%.
Russian-origin fuels are still reaching sanctioned countries
The report noted that despite the EU’s ban on imports of oil products made from Russian crude, which came into force on January 21, 2026, ten shipments of oil products from refineries processing Russian crude were unloaded at EU ports in May.
According to CREA, refineries in India, Turkiye, Brunei and Georgia that use Russian crude exported €641 million worth of oil products to sanctioning countries during the month.
The importers included the EU (€174 million), Australia (€275 million), the United States (€147 million) and New Zealand (€45 million).
CREA estimated that €214 million worth of these products had been refined from Russian crude.
The report added that exports to the United States originated from Reliance Industries’ Jamnagar refinery, Turkiye’s SOCAR-owned STAR refinery and the Tupras Izmit refinery.
“In the prior three months, 39 per cent of the STAR refinery’s crude oil feedstock and 15 per cent of the Jamnagar refinery’s feedstock came from Russia,” CREA said.
(With inputs from PTI)
