According to a recent report from Bloomberg, over the weekend, at least four tankers successfully delivered millions of barrels of Russian crude oil to Indian refineries. This development indicates that these scrutinized shipments are proceeding as usual, despite increasing pressure from the United States on India to halt such purchases. Oil traders and shipping firms have been eagerly awaiting guidance from New Delhi regarding the continuation of supplies from Moscow after US President Donald Trump issued threats last week aimed at curtailing trade with Russia. A senior aide even accused India of indirectly financing President Vladimir Putin’s military actions in Ukraine.
The US’s stringent demands follow an unexpected 25% tariff imposed on Indian exports to America, which has thrown a wrench into both private and state-owned refineries’ plans for purchasing oil. Nevertheless, insiders reveal that India has not instructed refiners to cease imports of Russian crude.
During this past weekend, three Aframax tankers—the Achilles, Elyte, and Horae—unloaded approximately 2.2 million barrels of Urals crude oil at private facilities operated by Nayara Energy Ltd and Reliance Industries Ltd after a brief delay noted in ship-tracking data.Another Aframax tanker named Mikati delivered over 720,000 barrels of Varandey crude through a two-stop journey that included stops at Kochi and Mangalore refineries. The Kochi facility is owned by Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd while Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd is primarily owned by Oil and Natural Gas Corp Ltd.Looking ahead, more tankers are set to deliver an additional 2.2 million barrels of Urals in the near future; Minion and Destan are currently docked at Sikka terminal managed by Reliance Industries while Aldebaran is scheduled for unloading across the gulf at Mundra port—a hub serving both Indian Oil Corp Ltd., which is government-operated, as well as HPCL-Mittal Energy Ltd., partially owned by Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd.
Reliance stands out as the largest purchaser of Russian Urals due to its long-term agreement with Rosneft PJSC ensuring consistent access to these shipments over several years.
India’s growing demand for discounted Russian crude has made it a focal point for criticism from both the US and its Western allies; this scrutiny intensified even before Trump’s latest remarks were made public. Notably,Nayara was sanctioned by the European Union on July 18 due to its connections with Russia—this led them to reduce their operational capacity while prompting trading partners to explore option supply sources.
As it stands now, neither Reliance nor Nayara nor BPCL or MRPL responded promptly when contacted for comments regarding these developments.
