India plans to cut its purchases of Russian oil by about half in response to new trade agreement terms between New Delhi and Washington, as outlined by U.S. President Donald Trump. Following the president’s official statement, all major Indian oil refineries, both state-owned and private, except for Nayara Energy Ltd., have suspended the purchase of spot cargoes of Russian oil.
This is reported by Business • Media
Reorienting to Other Oil Sources
It is expected that imports of Russian oil will decrease from an average of 1.2 million barrels per day recorded in January to approximately 600,000 barrels per day by April. Analysts predict that a stable import volume could range from 400,000 to 500,000 barrels per day. Meanwhile, the economic impact of the new trade cooperation with the U.S., according to experts, is expected to outweigh the benefits of cheap Russian oil.
India has intensified its supply diversification by shifting focus to oil from Venezuela. In particular, Indian Oil Corp. and Hindustan Petroleum Corp. recently jointly purchased a batch of Venezuelan crude oil. This marks the second major deal in a short period, as previously the largest private oil refining company in the country, Reliance Industries, purchased 2 million barrels of crude oil. Additionally, Indian Oil Corp. and Hindustan Petroleum Corp. acquired 2 million barrels of Merey grade oil, with the last time these companies purchased Venezuelan oil being in 2024.
New Gas Import Strategy
Indian company Bharat Petroleum is negotiating the supply of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) with Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR. Furthermore, to diversify energy resources, Bharat Petroleum has announced a tender for the import of LPG from the USA.
China has halted purchases of American LPG due to the tariff war, making supplies more advantageous for India.
Thus, India is strengthening its energy security by diversifying its sources of oil and gas supply, reducing dependence on the Russian Federation, and opening new markets for cooperation.