Foreign News
India Set To Partner Russian Energy Week
India is set to become the first official partner country of the Russian Energy Week International Forum in 2026, underlining the depth of energy ties between New Delhi and Moscow as the United States threatens tougher measures against countries buying Russian oil.
The forum is scheduled to be held in Moscow from October 14 to 16. The Federation of Indian Petroleum Industry (FIPI), which represents India’s Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, will have a dedicated stand at the event to showcase current and upcoming projects involving Indian-Russian cooperation.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak has said Moscow wants to expand bilateral energy cooperation beyond crude oil purchases and attract greater Indian investment in Russia’s oil and gas sector.
“Russia is interested in attracting Indian investment to the Russian oil and gas sector, as well as in developing a distribution network with the participation of Russian companies in India.”
Novak described India-Russia ties as a strategic partnership and said the two countries’ leaders remain in regular contact, while cooperation on mutually beneficial oil and gas projects continues.
The announcement comes as India relies heavily on Russian crude, which has become its largest source of imported oil since the global energy market was reshaped following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
India’s Russian crude imports reached a record in July for the second consecutive month, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA). Indian refiners imported an estimated 2.8 million barrels per day of Russian crude, accounting for about 55.5% of India’s total crude imports of just over 5 million barrels per day.
India imported Russian crude worth approximately €5.5 billion in July, compared with about €4.5 billion in June. Russian crude accounted for 87% of India’s overall fossil-fuel imports from Russia during the month.
The scale of the shift is evident when compared with pre-war trade. Russia supplied less than 100,000 barrels per day to India in 2021, around 2.5% of the country’s crude imports. The figure rose to about 740,000 barrels per day in 2022 and nearly 1.8 million barrels per day in 2023, when Russia accounted for 39% of India’s total crude imports and became its largest supplier.
The main attraction for Indian refiners has been commercial. Western sanctions and the withdrawal of several European buyers pushed Russia to offer crude at competitive prices, allowing Asian refiners to secure large volumes. CREA estimated the average price of Russia’s Urals crude at $60.22 per barrel in July, 3% lower than the previous month.
The growing dependence on Russian crude has also placed India under increasing pressure from Washington. The United States has threatened tougher measures against countries continuing to purchase Russian energy, including possible tariffs of up to 100%.
India’s role in the Russian oil trade also extends beyond crude imports. Its large refining industry allows Russian crude to be processed into diesel, petrol, aviation fuel and other petroleum products for domestic consumption and export.
CREA said refineries in India, Türkiye, Brunei and Georgia that processed Russian crude exported refined petroleum products worth a combined €633 million to countries imposing sanctions on Moscow in July. Of this, €214 million went to the European Union, €184 million to Australia and €234 million to the United States.
India was among the major sources of these shipments. CREA reported that five cargoes from Indian refineries processing Russian crude were discharged at European Union ports in July. The United States also received refined petroleum products from India’s Jamnagar refinery, where Russian crude accounted for an estimated 35% of feedstock during the three months ending in July.
The July increase in Russian crude imports was spread across several Indian ports. Imports through HMEL’s Mundra terminal rose 58% from June, while deliveries at Indian Oil’s Vadinar terminal increased 35%. Mumbai recorded a 37% rise in Russian crude arrivals.
At the same time, imports through Jamnagar remained largely unchanged and volumes through Paradip fell 22%.
Since 2022, India has become the second-largest buyer of Russian crude after China, accounting for around 37% of Russia’s crude oil exports during the period covered by CREA’s analysis. China accounted for about 50%.
Against this backdrop, Russia’s decision to make India the first official partner country at Russian Energy Week puts greater emphasis on the broader energy relationship between the two countries, including Moscow’s push for Indian investment in its oil and gas sector and expanded participation by Russian companies in India.
