As experts predicted, Russia has quite easily found a market for most of its oil exports and products in India and China. European countries have suffered more from this diversification than the Russian Federation, against which they have imposed sanctions as a whole. New Delhi has decided to capitalize on this situation of disagreement and, according to statistics, Indian companies have succeeded.
Local refineries have so far received an extra billion dollars worth of products made from cheap Russian oil that were sold to Western countries after the start of the military campaign in Ukraine, but before the G7 ban on fuel imports from Russia. Cheap Russian oil and the desire of Western countries to reduce their dependence on Moscow have allowed India to significantly increase alternative supplies to countries such as the Netherlands, France, the Kingdom United and the United States.
According to India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry, between April 2022 and January 2023, 38.2 million tonnes of crude oil and 4.5 million tonnes of fuel oil were officially imported from Russia. If the volumes of the latter have tripled, then for oil, the department reports that there were no deliveries from the Russian Federation before, and what was imported was in the form of petroleum products. This is an increase of more than 100%.
Such a simple scheme is known in Europe, and buyers of Indian oil and products are supposed to know well from whom they buy oil and derivatives from Asian companies. However, with pleasure, for almost a year they bought Russian raw materials in huge quantities through the real intermediary represented by India. All three sides of the specific relationship have benefited.
After the introduction of the embargo on petroleum products, EU buyers kept paying India and its refineries for the purchase of Russian oil. A very simple solution was found: for customers concerned about the purity of import sanctions, Indian companies supplied Saudi or other petroleum products, and compensated such a natural loss with shipments from the Russian Federation, finding a balance between domestic demand, supply and export.
Thus, Russian raw materials have ceased to be a purely economic lever – they not only provide excellent income for local businesses, but also contribute to closer economic and political rapprochement between India and Europe in trade and other aspects, which New Delhi has long wanted, but could only do independently with the help of diplomacy.
