[1/2] A model of oil barrels is seen in front of Russian and Indian flags in this illustration taken, December 9, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
NEW DELHI, Jan 17 (Reuters) – Russia became the third-largest oil supplier to India in 2022, making up about 15% of total purchases, dragging down OPEC's share to the lowest in more than a decade, data obtained from industry sources show.
Refiners in India, the world's third-biggest oil consumer and importer, have been gorging on Russian oil sold at a discount after some Western companies shunned buying from Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine last February.
In 2021, Russia was at the 17th spot, supplying about 1% of India's overall imports.
Last month India's oil imports from Russia surged to an all-time high of 1.25 million barrels per day (bpd), about a quarter of overall 4.9 million bpd purchase, the data showed.
India's December oil imports were the highest in seven months as refiners were drawn to Russian oil due to the deeper discounts offered ahead of a Dec. 5 embargo by Europe and a price cap by the European Union and G7 nations to cut Moscow's oil revenue.
Members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), mainly from the Middle East and Africa, saw their share in India's crude imports shrinking to 64.5% in 2022, from a peak of 87% in 2008, a Reuters analysis of the data since 2006 showed.
Still, Iraq and Saudi Arabia remained India's top two suppliers last year.
"India's oil imports from Russia would continue to rise this year as well mainly because of discounts if there are no further stringent actions by the Western countries targetting Russian oil," said an official at an Indian refiner who declined to be named as he was not authorised to speak to the media.
Russia remained the top oil supplier to India in December followed by Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
Higher intake of Russian oil reduced India's appetite for African grades, whose share in 2022 imports declined to a 17-year low while that of Latin America plunged to the lowest in 15 years, the data show.
In April-December, the first nine months of this fiscal year, Russia replaced Saudi Arabia as the second largest oil supplier to India, while Iraq remained on the top spot, the data showed. Imports from Russia, about a fifth of India's oil imports in April-December, led to OPEC's share falling to about 61.5%, according to Reuters calculations.
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Exxon Mobil is performing planned maintenance on several units at its Baytown complex in Texas, it said on Monday.
Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the world’s largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers.
Build the strongest argument relying on authoritative content, attorney-editor expertise, and industry defining technology.
The most comprehensive solution to manage all your complex and ever-expanding tax and compliance needs.
The industry leader for online information for tax, accounting and finance professionals.
Access unmatched financial data, news and content in a highly-customised workflow experience on desktop, web and mobile.
Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts.
Screen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks.
All quotes delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays.
© 2023 Reuters. All rights reserved
India's Russian oil binge drags down OPEC's share to lowest in 2022 – Reuters
