India remained the world’s second-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels in May, importing Russian hydrocarbons worth an estimated EUR 5.8 billion (US$6.7 billion), as refiners ramped up purchases of discounted crude oil from Moscow, according to a report by the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).Crude oil constituted the largest portion of India’s imports from Russia during the month, accounting for about 83 percent of the total of 4.8 billion euros. The agency stated that the value of imports of petroleum products amounted to 550 million euros, while the value of coal imports amounted to 429 million euros.“India’s total crude oil import volumes registered an 8 percent month-on-month increase in May. This is partly explained by a 21 percent month-on-month increase in Russian imports,” CREA said in its report.Increased imports of Russian crudeMany of the largest refining centers in India recorded an increase in Russian crude imports during the month. According to CREA, volumes discharged at the Vadinar refinery in Gujarat increased by 36 percent compared to April, while deliveries to the Jamnagar refining complex rose by 14 percent.State-run refiners have also expanded their purchases after imports resumed earlier this year. New Mangalore and Visakhapatnam refineries, which stopped imports of Russian crude at the end of November 2025, continued to buy Russian oil after resuming purchases in March.
Russian crude shipments to New Mangalore rose 13 percent month-on-month in May, while imports into Visakhapatnam jumped 42 percent, the report said.The Paradip refinery in Odisha also offloaded the largest volume of Russian crude in two years, highlighting the continued attractiveness of discounted Russian oil for Indian refiners despite geopolitical and sanctions-related pressures.Russia remains the main supplierIndia has emerged as one of the largest buyers of Russian crude after Western sanctions and trade restrictions following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine reshaped global energy markets.The latest figures indicate that Russian oil still occupies a large share of India’s basket of crude oil imports, even as New Delhi diversifies supplies from the Middle East, Africa and the United States.According to CREA, China remained the largest buyer of Russian crude exports in May, accounting for 50 percent of shipments, followed by India at 36 percent. Türkiye accounted for 6 percent and the European Union 5 percent.“In May 2026, China remained the largest global buyer of Russian fossil fuels, accounting for 38 percent (7 billion euros) of Russian export revenues from the five largest importers,” the report said.Products still reach sanctioned countriesCREA also noted that despite the EU ban on imports of petroleum products made with Russian crude, many shipments from refineries processing Russian oil continued to arrive in sanctioned countries.“Refineries using Russian crude in India, Turkey, Brunei and Georgia exported oil products worth €641 million to sanctioned countries in May 2026.
Importers included the European Union (€174 million), Australia (€275 million), the United States (€147 million) and New Zealand (€45 million). An estimated €214 million of these products were refined from Russian crude.The report added that exports to the United States came from Reliance Industries’ Jamnagar Refinery, the Turkish Star Refinery, and the Tubras Izmit Refinery.“In the previous three months, 39 per cent of the raw material for Star Refinery and 15 per cent of the raw material for Jamnagar Refinery came from Russia,” CREA said.
