India to keep buying cheap Russian oil as long as there are no sanctions
India will continue to buy Russian oil (Getty Images)
India is prepared to continue purchasing oil from Russian companies that are allowed to make such sales due to low prices, according to India's Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.
Western sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine have limited the price Moscow can receive for its crude oil, and India is willing to buy oil and gas at the lowest possible prices from any supplier, Puri said.
"If an entity is not under sanctions, there is no question I will buy from the cheapest supplier," he said.
According to Puri, European countries and Japanese businesses are also buying products from Russia, so India is not alone.
India is one of the world's largest energy consumers, importing 88% of the oil it needs, and Puri expects energy consumption to rise through increased use of natural gas and renewable energy sources.
India, the world's third-largest oil consumer and importer, has an annual refining capacity of about 252 million tons or 5.04 million barrels per day and is looking to expand it.
The global spike in liquefied gas prices following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has slowed India's transition to natural gas. India plans to increase its gas consumption from 6% to 15% of the energy mix by 2030, but the pace of change depends on prices.
"If gas prices were to stabilize and come down then its share in our energy mix will go up," Puri said.
Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, India has significantly increased trade with Russia, particularly by purchasing its oil, which profits the Kremlin's war machine.
At the beginning of 2024, Ukraine classified India as a hostile country, grouping it alongside North Korea, China, and Iran.
