India resumes buying Russian oil amid Iran conflict — Bloomberg
Photo: India resumes purchases of Russian oil due to the war in Iran (Getty Images)
Several tankers carrying Russian oil, which were initially headed for East Asian countries, changed course and set sail for India. This happened against the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East, according to Bloomberg.
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According to ship tracking data, at least two tankers carrying Russian oil, which initially indicated East Asia as their destination, changed course to India.
The agency suggests that this may indicate that New Delhi is once again ready to actively accept Russian crude oil amid the escalation in the Middle East.
Two tankers carrying approximately 1.4 million barrels of Urals crude oil are expected to unload at Indian ports this week, according to data from analytics companies Kpler and Vortexa.
In particular, the Suezmax-class tanker Odune arrived on Wednesday at the port of Paradip on the east coast of India with a cargo of 730,000 barrels of oil. Another Aframax-class tanker, Matari, is expected to arrive at the port of Vadinar in the west of the country. India resumes purchases of Russian oil due to the war in Iran, according to Bloomberg.
Source: Bloomberg
In addition, another vessel, Indri, which had previously signaled its course to Singapore, abruptly changed its route in the Arabian Sea and set course for India.
All three tankers - Odune, Matari, and Indri - were subject to sanctions by the United Kingdom and the European Union last year.
The ship management companies from Azerbaijan and their owners from Hong Kong have not yet commented on the change of routes.
Relevant to India and Russia
After the start of Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine, India became a key buyer of oil from Russia.
In recent weeks, Indian oil refineries have reduced purchases of Russian oil due to pressure from the US. This forced Russia to actively seek buyers in China.
However, the war in the Middle East and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz are increasing the risk of oil shortages in the market. Against this backdrop, Indian refiners are likely to turn to Russian supplies again.
