India is turning its back on Russia!
There are indications of a major strategic change in India’s energy policy. There was a time when India had emerged as the largest buyer of Russian crude oil, but now the picture seems to be changing. Latest figures obtained from business sources and shipping data are testifying that India’s oil imports from Russia are continuously decreasing. According to the report of Economics Times, in the first half of this financial year (April-September), there has been a huge decline of 8.4% in the purchase of oil from Russia as compared to the same period last year.
The allure of Russian oil has faded
India has buy oil from russia It has been reduced, two big reasons for this are coming to the fore. Firstly, the huge discounts being offered on oil from Russia are no longer as attractive as before. Due to reduction in discounts, the deal for Russian oil is not as profitable for Indian refineries as it used to be. The second reason is the shortage of supply. Both these reasons have forced Indian oil companies to look for new alternatives, and they have started turning to traditional markets like the Middle East and the US. According to the data, in the first six months of this financial year, India imported an average of 1.75 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil from Russia, which is much less than last year.
Trade deal changed the big game
There is another big aspect to this whole matter America The increasing pressure of. Washington is constantly putting pressure on New Delhi to reduce oil purchases from Russia. White House trade advisor Peter Navarro had even said that India’s purchase of Russian crude oil is funding Moscow’s war. America has also doubled the tariff on Indian goods, and reduction in oil purchases from Russia is being seen as a condition for reducing it. US Trade Secretary Scott Besant has clearly said that India will have to balance its crude oil purchases, which means it will have to buy more American oil and less Russian oil. An Indian government source has also confirmed that the increased purchase of energy products from America is linked to the outcome of trade talks between the two countries.
Figures tell the whole story
If we look at the figures for the month of September only, India bought 1.6 million barrels of oil per day from Russia, which was the same as in August, but 14.2% less than in September last year. Interestingly, during this period, private refineries like Reliance Industries and Nayara Energy increased imports from Russia, while government refineries reduced their purchases.
In sharp contrast, between April and September, India’s crude oil imports from the US increased by 6.8% compared to last year to about 213,000 barrels per day. This clearly shows that India is diversifying its oil basket. Overall, Russia’s share in India’s oil imports has declined from 40% to about 36%, while the Middle East’s share has increased from 42% to 45%. Due to this, the total share of OPEC countries has also increased from 45% to 49%, which shows that India is once again relying on traditional suppliers for its energy security.