India’s overall oil imports from Russia, including private refiners’ purchases, doubled month-on-month in March despite a 4 per cent reduction in total crude oil imports.
“The biggest shift was in state-owned refineries’ imports from Russia, which saw a massive 148 per cent increase, presumably due to Russian barrels being more available in the spot market, which serve as their primary source of imports,” said CREA in a report.
State-run refiners’ Russian crude oil imports were 72 per cent higher in the month compared to the same period last year.
Since the beginning of the conflict in West Asia, Indian refiners have increased Russian oil purchases on the back of the US waiver, which expired on April 11. Prior to the war, India had been reducing crude purchases from Moscow amid pressure from the US and the European Union.
State-owned refiners include Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL), and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL), while private players include Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries (RIL) and Russia-backed Nayara Energy.
Private refineries registered a 66 per cent month-on-month increase in March, while state-owned refineries at Mangalore and Visakhapatnam, which had stopped Russian imports at the end of November 2025, resumed purchases in March.
India, which was the second-highest buyer of Russian fossil fuels in March, imported hydrocarbons worth 5.8 billion euros from the country, with crude oil products constituting 91 per cent of the purchases, totalling 5.3 billion euros. Coal and oil products constituted the remainder of the country’s monthly imports.
In March, Russia’s monthly fossil fuel export revenues saw a 52 per cent month-on-month increase to 713 million euro per day, the highest in two years, while volumes grew by a modest 16 per cent.
Meanwhile, the government continues dialogue with its energy partners in West Asia amid continuing tensions in the region. Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar spoke to the foreign ministers of Kuwait, Israel, Singapore and Australia to discuss the regional situation and the well-being of the Indian community, the government said on Tuesday in a multi-sectoral response to the evolving situation.
The oil ministry said LPG supply in the country continues to be affected by the prevailing geopolitical situation, but no dry-outs have been reported at LPG distributorships.