Despite sanctions from Western countries, India has increased the purchase of oil and other energy products from Russia in May 2026. According to the report of the European research organization Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), India was the second largest country in the world to purchase fossil fuel from Russia in the month of May. During this period, India imported crude oil, coal and other energy products worth about 5.8 billion euros (about 6.7 billion dollars) from Russia.
According to the report, crude oil accounted for the largest share in the total energy products purchased by India from Russia. In May, India bought Russian crude oil worth about 4.8 billion euros, which was about 83 percent of the total imports. Apart from this, oil products worth about 550 million euros and coal worth about 429 million euros were also imported from Russia. CREA says that India’s total crude oil imports increased by 8 percent in May, while imports from Russia registered a jump of 21 percent.
India becomes the second largest buyer
According to CREA data, China bought 50 percent of Russia’s crude oil exports in May 2026, while India’s share was 36 percent. After this, Turkey was at the next places with 6 percent share and European Union with 5 percent share. In this way, India remains the second largest buyer of Russian oil after China.
Refineries increased purchases
Many big refineries of India increased the purchase of Russian oil during May. The arrival of Russian oil at Gujarat’s Vadinar Refinery increased by 36 percent compared to April, while at Jamnagar Refining Complex the increase was 14 percent. Government refineries also did not lag behind. Russian oil supply to the New Mangaluru Refinery increased by 13 percent, while imports to the Visakhapatnam Refinery increased by 42 percent.
The report said that Odisha’s Paradip Refinery received the highest amount of Russian crude oil in May compared to the last two years. It is clear from this that despite international pressure and sanctions, Russian oil available at concessional rates still remains very attractive for Indian refineries.
Profit earned from crude oil
After the Ukraine war, when Western countries imposed many economic sanctions on Russia, Russia started giving huge discounts on its oil. Taking advantage of this opportunity, India started buying cheap oil in large quantities. This helped the country keep energy import costs low and also increased the profits of Indian refineries. This is the reason why Russia is still a major supplier of crude oil to India.
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