Indian Oil Refiners

Indian refiners are increasing diesel exports as the West Asia conflict and restrictions by Russia and China tighten supplies, although higher crude import costs and export duties could limit gains

Refineries in India and two other countries that run on Russian crude shipped 1 billion euros (USD 1.2 billion) of oil products to sanctioning countries in September, up 43 per cent from August, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA). Reliance Industries Ltd's Jamnagar refinery in Gujarat supplied six of the seven cargoes unloaded at EU ports that month, despite the bloc's ban on fuel made from Russian crude. The CREA report covers refineries in India, Turkiye and Brunei. The EU took 667 million euros' worth of their products, Australia 168 million euros, the US 154 million euros and New Zealand 19 million euros. CREA estimated 295 million euros' worth was refined from Russian crude. Jamnagar also supplied the group's largest US-bound exports, worth 122 million euros, and Russian crude made up 32 per cent of its imports from July to September. Italy received three of the seven EU-bound shipments, Romania two, and Spain and Cyprus one each. Exports repor

Refiners are shifting from relying on Gulf producers and traders to transport crude through Hormuz, seeking to reduce the premium paid for cost-and-freight shipments

Price headache is turning into a physical procurement crisis for importing countries

Given the pressure on Moscow's crude exports, processors have been seeking alternative barrels from regions including West Africa and even the Americas

State-run oil refiners reported quarterly losses as higher crude oil prices, weak fuel marketing margins and LPG under-recoveries weighed on earnings

The companies, however, have little room to buy Iranian oil immediately, having fully contracted shipments required through August after they sought to secure supplies in advance during the war

India's crude oil imports from Russia surged in June, while shipments from the United Arab Emirates were near-record levels as refiners sought to secure supplies ahead of the full restoration of flows from Gulf producers following the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, analysts said. India imported an average of 2.66 million barrels per day of crude oil from Russia in June, through June 19, compared to 1.91 million bpd in May, data from maritime and commodity intelligence firm Kpler showed, cementing Moscow's position as the country's largest oil supplier. Imports from the United Arab Emirates stood at 6,36,000 barrels per day (bpd) in June, through June 19, marginally below the record 6,44,000 bpd imported in May, while Venezuela emerged as India's fourth-largest crude supplier with shipments of 2,09,000 bpd, behind Saudi Arabia's 384,000 bpd. Imports from the United States fell sharply to 91,000 bpd from 2,52,000 bpd in May, according to Kpler data. The purchases underscore India

State refiners have already secured sufficient crude for the next two months and are evaluating long-term supply commitments from West Asian producers

Indian refiners, including Indian Oil Corp and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd, ‌have also purchased crude through spot tenders in recent weeks

US renews Russia oil waiver, offering relief to India amid Hormuz disruptions, as refiners rely on diversified crude sources to maintain supplies

India has also ramped up oil purchases from alternate sources such as Nigeria and Angola

Trump announced a Texas refinery with investment from Reliance, the first such US project in 50 years. Jamnagar's world-leading Nelson Complexity Index may explain why RIL was chosen

UBS' Global Oil team has also raised their near-term oil price forecasts, Q1-26E to $71/bbl (around $80/bbl for March), and the average for 2026 to $72/bbl

After controversy over remarks that the US "permitted" India to import Russian crude, Scott Bessent thanked international partners for helping stabilise global energy markets

Iran war impact: Nomura sees windfall gains for refiners like RIL but margin squeeze for Indian Oil, BPCL and HPCL amid rising crude and gas disruptions

Indian refiners are diversifying crude sourcing to bypass the Strait of Hormuz and tapping inventories as the West Asia crisis disrupts key routes that handle over half of India's oil and gas imports

Venezuela's heavy, acidic grades are a poor replacement for higher-quality Russian variants, which are now declining in India's crude oil basket due to US pressure

White House said in order that 'India has committed to stop directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil,' and that import tariffs on all Indian goods may be raised if it resumes purchases

Indian Oil aims to increase refining capacity to 98.4 MTPA by 2028