India loaded up more Russian oil in March as Biden era sanctions fail to curb supply

Given the geopolitical stress and its impact on global energy market, India has been looking at diversifying its crude oil sources to shield itself from supply-related challenges.

India’s crude oil import from Moscow reached an eight-month high in March despite sanctions by the outgoing Biden administration on Russian oil entities, highlighting the inefficiencies in enforcement of the curbs, one industry expert told Moneycontrol.

India’s imports of Russian crude surged to approximately 1.9 million barrels per day (bpd) in March — marking an increase of 480 thousand bpd month-on-month and 300 thousand bpd year-on-year, showed data from commodity market analytics firm Kpler. India had imported 1.47 million barrels of crude oil from Russia in February.

“This rebound underscores a critical trend, that despite the presence of sanctions, Russia’s crude flows to India remain resilient. The current structure of sanctions, lacking secondary enforcement targetting buyers or shippers, appears insufficient to significantly disrupt this trade,” Sumit Ritolia, senior refining analyst, told Moneycontrol.

“As a result, unless further pressure is applied through broader enforcement or new mechanisms, India is likely to retain its status as Russia’s most important crude outlet throughout 2025,” Ritolia added.

Crude oil imports from Moscow were temporarily expected to slump, as Indian refiners were unable to immediately secure spot supplies after former US President Joe Biden had on January 10 imposed new sanctions on Russian oil entities. The Biden administration had sanctioned Russian oil producers Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegaz, as well as around 180 tankers shipping Russian oil.

State-run Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL) chairman AS Sahney had said in January that the refiner was looking to secure ‘clean’ Russian crude oil, where the entire chain including the supplier, insurance and the tanker would not be under sanctions.

Trump’s Threat of Secondary Tariffs 

The higher offtake of Russian oil by India also comes at a time when the US President Trump has threatened to levy secondary sanctions on Russian oil buyers, if Moscow fails to end war in Ukraine.

India’s oil supply would be adversely affected if Trump goes through with the decision, as the country sources around 30 percent of its total oil imports from Russia. However, India’s strategy of diversifying its oil supplies may help protect against any impact, said experts.

“India’s imports from Russia are very high, but they have fallen from the peak witnessed earlier. India is looking to diversify its sources and increase reliance on its traditional Middle-Eastern suppliers. Even if risks (of secondary sanctions) materialise, the window is open for India with respect to other suppliers,” said Hitesh Jain, lead analyst at Yes Securities.

The secondary sanctions would not be implemented immediately, giving India enough time to navigate the situation, Hitesh Jain added. Taking out Russian oil supplies from the global energy market, however, would not be feasible for any player, another expert told Moneycontrol.

Given the geopolitical stress and its impact on global energy market, India has been looking at diversifying its crude oil sources to shield itself from supply-related challenges.

Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh had earlier told Moneycontrol that India currently purchases crude oil from 40 countries, compared to only 27 nations supplying in 2007. Puri had said that India’s energy import strategy is dependent on discounts offered by the suppliers, as the country is looking to buy the cheapest oil available in the market.

Focus on Energy Security

India is reliant on imports for over 85 percent of its crude oil needs, and amid the current global uncertainty, the country has been securing from more countries in smaller quantities in order to diversify the import portfolio while maintaining close trade ties with traditional Middle-Eastern suppliers.

In addition to Russia, India has ramped up crude oil imports from countries including UAE, US, Kuwait, Nigeria, among others. Meanwhile, in March, the country’s oil imports from its traditional Middle-East suppliers - Iraq and Saudi Arabia - were strong but lower than February. Despite a slump in oil imports from the two countries in March, supply has majorly remained robust.

India imported 897,000 bpd of crude oil from Iraq in March 2025 as compared to 1.08 million bpd a month ago. Saudi Arabia supplied 565,000 bpd of crude oil last month, lower than 716,000 bpd during February.

In March, India’s crude oil imports from UAE and US came in at 428,000 bpd and 289,000 bpd, respectively. UAE supplied 338,000 bpd of crude oil to India, while US provided 144,000 bpd in February.

India’s imports of Venezuelan oil fell in March to 61,000 bpd in March from 93,000 bpd in the previous month. Oil imports from the country are further expected to whittle down, with US President Trump recently announcing a trade tariff of 25 percent on any nation that buys oil from Venezuela.

India’s total crude import in March was at an all-time high due to strong domestic demand, and oil companies running at full refining capacity to meet targets. Kpler data showed that India’s overall crude imports in March were at 5.2 million bpd, the highest monthly import volume on record since 2008.