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Cheaper Russian oil helped Indian refiners save $3.3 billion in first half of FY24
Indian refiners are estimated to have saved around $3.3 billion in the first half of the current financial year (FY24) through their purchases of discounted Russian crude oil, shows an analysis of India’s official trade data for April-September. Russia, which used to be a marginal supplier of crude to India before the war in Ukraine, was New Delhi’s largest source of oil in April-September, accounting for almost 39 per cent of India’s overall oil imports by volume and nearly 36 per cent by value.
India is the world’s third-largest consumer of crude oil and depends on imports to meet over 85% of its requirement. Crude oil also tops the list of India’s merchandise imports by value. With Western buyers cutting oil imports from Russia in the wake of its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Moscow started offering deep discounts on its crude. Indian refiners have been lapping up these discounted barrels.
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