Why India may have to rework Russian oil purchase if a price cap is imposed

India will have to follow a delicate balancing act if the West imposes a pricing limit on supplies from Moscow

Come December, India may have to re-evaluate purchases of Russian oil if a price cap on crude oil proposed by the US and the European Union (EU) comes into effect. That impacts nearly a quarter of India’s oil purchases that come at a discount, which helps limit marketing losses for India’s state refiners, enabling New Delhi to manage inflation by freezing pump prices of motor fuels.

In September, India imported 1 million barrels a day or 24 per cent of its overall imports from Russia, which became the biggest supplier of oil to India. Russia achieved this distinction in just