Steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal’s energy joint venture has bought Russian oil transported on sanctions-listed vessels, according to an analysis of satellite imagery, shipping data and customs records by the Financial Times.
As per FT, the Guru Gobind Singh Refinery in Bathinda, Punjab, a major oil refinery co-owned by the long-term UK resident Mittal Energy, received at least four crude shipments worth almost $280 million this year, which had been transported most of the way from Russia on sanctions-listed ships. The refinery is the 10th largest in India, able to process 11.3mn tonnes a year.
“The oil was transported on the US-blacklisted vessels between July and September from the Arctic port of Murmansk to as far as the Gulf of Oman.”
The report claimed that all of the ships involved in the process sought to “conceal” their behaviour with a combination of “deceptive practices”, either shutting off their transponders or using them to broadcast false positions.
It is not known who arranged for the oil to be transported on the sanctioned tankers, nor if HPCL-Mittal Energy Limited (HMEL) — the entity that owns the refinery — was aware of the use of the vessels, the report says.
HMEL is a joint venture between part of the Mittal group and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited, each holding a 49 per cent stake. The remaining 2 per cent is in the hands of financial institutions, according to the company.
The developments about the shipments come as the US is seeking to raise the pressure on Indian companies not to buy Russian oil. The Trump administration last week imposed sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil, Moscow’s two leading oil producers, in an effort to force Russian President Vladimir Putin to engage in negotiations with Ukraine.
India has become one of the biggest importers of Russian crude after Putin launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Russia has exported an average of 5mn barrels a day of seaborne crude this year, with 1.7mn b/d of the total being purchased by India, according to data analytics group Kpler. The next largest share headed to China.
Lakshmi Mittal, the executive chair of ArcelorMittal — the world’s largest steel and mining group — has built a global business network. The billionaire, who has been a board member of Goldman Sachs since 2008, reportedly told associates earlier this year that he plans to move out of the UK due to recent tax rule changes.
