At least three tankers carrying Russian crude are heading for Reliance Industries Ltd.’s plant on India’s west coast after the refiner began modest purchases following a brief pause due to heightened US scrutiny.
The vessels, laden with nearly 2.2 million barrels of Urals, are currently en route to the huge Jamnagar complex and are scheduled to deliver their cargoes early this month, according to data analytics firm Kpler. The crude will be processed into fuels for domestic use, rather than for export.
Reliance halted buying after the US blacklisted Rosneft PJSC and Lukoil PJSC in October, but has started sourcing barrels from other suppliers, Bloomberg News reported last week. Rosneft was previously the Indian refiner’s largest source of Russian oil, underpinned by a term deal to supply 500,000 barrels a day.
A Reliance spokesman didn’t immediately reply to an email seeking comment.
India has faced scrutiny from President Donald Trump and key members of his administration for its oil trade with Russia — criticism that’s been met by public defiance. The uncertainty has led to the nation’s refiners cutting back on their buying, with imports sinking to lowest in three years last month.
Reliance, controlled by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, was the world’s top buyer of Russian crude for most of 2024 to 2025, according to data from Kpler. India and China became a key outlet for oil flows from the OPEC+ producer after others shunned its energy following the war in Ukraine.
The recently purchased cargoes by Reliance are being supplied by traders Alghaf Marine DMCC, Redwood Global Supply FZ LLC, RusExport and Ethos Energy, according to data from Kpler. Alghaf Marine and Redwood Global have been sanctioned by the UK, and the former is the successor company to the Middle Eastern branch of Litasco, the trading arm of Lukoil.
Russian oil deliveries to Reliance’s Jamnagar refinery complex plunged to about 270,000 barrels a day in December, or just under 20 per cent of its total imports from global sources, according to data from Kpler. That’s down from the January to November period, when Russian grades made up more than 40 per cent.
Reliance isn’t the only Indian refiner taking Russian crude, with state-owned Indian Oil Corp. and Bharat Petroleum Corp. also picking up cargoes from non-sanctioned sellers. They’ve been lured by deep discounts, lean refining margins and uncertainties around the status of trade negotiations with Washington.
