More than 15 million barrels of Russian crude are currently floating near India, potentially offering a quick supply option as disruptions in the West Asia region tighten energy markets, Bloomberg reported, citing ship-tracking data.
The oil is stored on more than a dozen tankers positioned in the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. These cargoes, which appear to be unsold or without a designated destination, could reach Indian ports within a week.
In addition, about eight vessels carrying roughly 7 million barrels of Russia’s Urals crude are waiting off Singapore and could also reach India in about a week. Several other cargoes are moving eastward through the Mediterranean Sea and the Suez Canal and may arrive in India within a month.
India had become a major buyer of discounted Russian crude after the Ukraine conflict began, but purchases had slowed amid pressure from the United States. However, the ongoing conflict in West Asia has disrupted supplies from Persian Gulf producers, prompting Washington to grant a temporary one-month waiver allowing India to resume purchases.
Some tankers carrying Russian crude had already started indicating Indian ports as their destination even before the waiver was issued in Washington last week. Data from Kpler shows about 18 vessels carrying Urals crude are now signalling India as their destination.
“Refiners could quickly ramp up purchases again, potentially pushing volumes back above 2 million barrels a day in the near term,” said Sumit Ritolia, an analyst at the data intelligence firm. “The steep discounts previously seen on Russian crude could narrow significantly and may even shift toward premiums.”
Russia’s Urals crude had been trading at steep discounts to ICE Brent as India reduced purchases and China absorbed surplus cargoes. The return of Indian buying combined with supply disruptions from the Middle East could reverse that trend.
Indian refiners have already purchased more than 10 million barrels of Urals crude in recent days, paying premiums to Brent once freight and delivery costs are included. Prices are reportedly as much as $12 per barrel higher than in previous weeks.
