Saudi Arabia Has Dropped Russia From The Top Spot In Oil Supplies To India

• 19.02.2026, 14:24

This has not been seen since the fall of 2022.

The share of Russian oil in India's imports fell in January to its lowest since October 2022, when India only increased purchases from Russia, with which it had not cooperated in this area before the outbreak of the war in Ukraine. To compensate for the drop in supplies, India significantly increased purchases from the Middle East, which accounted for 55% of its share compared to 21.2% from Russia.

This has not been seen since the fall of 2022, when the Urals grade, which Europe was preparing to abandon, began to displace Middle Eastern grades in Indian imports. Data for February, however, "already shows Saudi Arabia has regained its position as India's main supplier, with imports hitting a new record high," said Reuters Sumit Ritola, lead analyst at Kpler.

In January, India received 1.1 million bpd of Russian crude, down 23.5 percent from December and a third from a year earlier. The decline is likely to continue, Ritola said: while imports in February amounted to about 1-1.2 million barrels, only 800,000 bpd is expected in March.

Kpler estimates that Russian supplies will gradually decline in the medium term, but will not stop completely.

In particular, Nayara Energy, which is controlled by Rosneft and is under EU sanctions, will continue to receive them. The company, which has a 400,000 bpd refinery, has no other sources.

The share of imports from Latin America reached a 12-month high of about 10% in January.