Indian Refiner Boosts Mideast Oil Imports As Russian Flows Slow

One of India’s largest refiners has been forced to seek alternative and more expensive crude cargoes from the Middle East to make up for lower supplies from Russia, putting a spotlight on shifting export patterns as traders focus on the global market’s prospects in 2025.

“We are short of three, four Russian cargoes for January-loading and February-delivery,” Bharat Petroleum Corp. Finance Director Vetsa Ramakrishna Gupta said. “We issued tenders and have secured alternate grades from Iraq, UAE and others, he said, referring to nations including the United Arab Emirates.

India became a mainstay market for Russian oil flows in the aftermath of Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, boosting imports that aid its fast-growing economy. Still, the nation has faced a drop-off in shipments in recent weeks as Western states tightened the web of sanctions against Moscow’s so-called dark fleet of tankers, and Russian refiners boosted run rates. In addition, Moscow has also been under pressure to abide by OPEC+ production goals.

While Middle Eastern supplies were $2 a barrel costlier than Russia’s Urals, there’s no shortage of crude in the wider market, Gupta said in an interview on Tuesday. At present, BPCL has no plans to raise volumes under year-long deals with national oil companies that will be negotiated next month, he said.

India’s imports of oil from Russia slipped to 1.47 million barrels a day this month, the lowest since December last year, according to analytics firm Kpler.