India – Russia: War clouds in the Middle East are having a severe impact on the Indian energy sector. Due to the US-Israeli attacks on Iran, the supply of oil through the ‘Strait of Hormuz’ has almost stopped. Due to this crisis, India’s oil imports fell by 13% in March compared to February. However, Russia stood by India during these difficult times. India, the world’s third-largest oil consumer, imported 45 lakh barrels of crude oil daily in March. Supply from the Middle East has fallen 61% to 11.8 million barrels since the start of the war on February 28 due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The severity of the situation is reflected in the attacks on two Indian ships that tried to cross the Strait of Hormuz last Saturday.
Supported by Russia…
As oil flows from the Middle East dwindled, Indian refineries turned to Russia. Imports from Russia doubled in March compared to February. An average of 22.5 lakh barrels of Russian oil reaches India every day. The US has eased sanctions on Russian oil to control rising oil prices due to the Iran war. The extension of this relaxation by the Trump government for another month has given a big relief to India. India became the first country to get this exemption. Meanwhile, OPEC’s share of India’s imports fell to a record 29 percent. The supply to India from Iraq and UAE, which were at the top earlier, has fallen to a minimum level. Russia was the largest supplier of oil to India in March, followed by Saudi Arabia. India increased its imports from African countries (particularly Angola) as oil from the Middle East declined. Angola is currently the third largest supplier.
India, which had reduced its purchases from Russia due to US pressure in the last financial year, is now relying on Russia again in the changed circumstances due to the war. Market analysts believe that oil imports from Russia are likely to increase in the coming days with the flexibility given by America.
