As sanctions deadline nears, India’s Russian oil intake slumps two-thirds in November

Indian refiners have sharply reduced purchases of Russian oil this month as US sanctions on Moscow’s top exporters Rosneft and Lukoil prompt buyers to proceed more cautiously, the Economic Times reported on Wednesday, citing data from analytics firm Kpler.

The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced the sanctions on October 22, giving companies until November 21 to wind down transactions with the two firms.

Russian crude loaded onto India-bound ships averaged 672,000 barrels per day (bpd) between November 1–17, down two-thirds from October’s 1.88 million bpd, the report said.

Russia’s total crude loadings for all destinations fell 28% month-on-month to 2.78 million bpd.

Nearly half of Russia’s loaded tankers are currently sailing without declared destinations, which indicates exporters are seeking buyers and alternative routes to avoid sanctions, the report added.

China, India and Türkiye accounted for nearly 90% of Russia’s crude exports in October, according to the paper.

Since Russian cargoes take about a month to reach Indian ports, the weaker November loadings would largely be reflected only in December arrivals, after the expiry of the November 21 wind-down period for sanctions on the two Russian companies.

The approaching deadline has pushed Indian refiners to limit fresh bookings while expediting previously contracted cargoes. Imports of Russian oil into India rose 16% to 1.88 million bpd during November 1–17 compared with October’s average, the newspaper reported.

Russia has been increasingly using opaque logistics, including sanctioned or “shadow fleet” tankers that transfer crude mid-sea to non-sanctioned vessels allowed to call at Indian ports. In October, 44% of Russia’s crude was carried on sanctioned tankers, ET said, citing the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.

The decline in Russian crude imports comes amid India’s announcement of its first structured contract to import liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) from the United States.

Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday said that state-run IndianOil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum have finalised a one-year agreement to import around 2.2 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of LPG from the US Gulf Coast for 2026.

The move is also seen as an attempt to narrow India’s trade surplus with Washington, a persistent concern for President Donald Trump, who has cited it as justification for the reciprocal tariff on Indian goods.