The war that started under the leadership of Trump and Netanyahu is continuing. It has been more than a month but the war between Iran and Israel has not subsided. Only the rhetoric, claims of stopping the war and the frequency of shelling have increased. Due to this war that broke out in the Middle East, countries around the world had to bear the impact of supply stoppage in Hormuz. But in this time of crisis, Russia emerged as a good trade partner for India. According to reports, in the month of March, India increased its oil imports from Russia by about 90 percent.
According to the report of Times of India, India made a huge increase in the purchase of crude oil from Russia in March. Imports increased by 90% compared to February, while the country’s total crude oil consumption fell by about 15% due to supply disruptions in West Asia. According to the report, the import of petroleum gas (LPG) decreased by 40% during this month, while the supply of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) also decreased, due to which New Delhi had to look for other supply options.
After a slowdown in purchases between December 2025 and February 2026, there was a strong increase in imports from Russia. The increase came after a 30-day reprieve given by the US, which allowed the purchase of restricted oils that were already in transit. Along with Russia, India also increased the purchase of crude oil from African countries like Angola, Gabon, Ghana and Congo, although the contribution of these countries in the total import was still less.
Expected to supply further
Kpler analyst Sumit Ritoiya told TOI that some relief came from Middle East oil producers sending supplies through pipelines that bypass the Strait of Hormuz. These include Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline and UAE’s Habshan-Fujairah line. Despite disruptions in sea routes, these other routes allowed the flow of supplies to continue to some extent. Ritoia further said that crude oil purchases from Russia are likely to continue in April and supply-related risks are expected to be reduced due to possible additional supplies from Iran and Venezuela.
Meanwhile, according to a media report, due to the force majeure declared by QatarEnergy and the blockages related to Hormuz, a huge decline of 92% was recorded in the LNG imports from Qatar. This shortfall was partially compensated by increasing imports from America, Oman, Angola and Nigeria. The problem of sharp decline in LPG imports was handled to some extent by increasing domestic production and reducing supplies to commercial and industrial consumers, thereby ensuring adequate availability of LPG for more than 33 crore domestic consumers in India.
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