India, the world's third-biggest oil importer and consumer,
is looking to diversify its oil supplies as fresh U.S. sanctions on Moscow
threaten to dent Russian oil sales to India, the biggest buyer of Russian
seaborne crude.
About 7.6 million barrels of oil, or 256,000 barrels per day
(bpd), were headed to India on three very large crude carriers and three
Suezmax vessels, according to ship tracking firm Kpler.
The ships, which were largely headed to India's west coast,
were chartered by Reliance Industries, Vitol, Equinor and Sinokor, among
others, according to data from financial firm LSEG.
India was the top buyer of Russian oil last year after other
groups retreated from purchases following Western sanctions on Moscow for its
invasion on Ukraine in February 2022.
Last month, the U.S. tightened efforts to reduce Russia's
oil trade adding sanctions on state-owned shipping firm Sovcomflot and 14 crude
oil tankers involved in Russian oil transportation.
India's Reliance, operator of the world's biggest refining
complex, will not buy Russian oil loaded on tankers operated by Sovcomflot
after recent U.S. sanctions, sources told Reuters last week.
More Indian refiners plan to shun Sovcomflot vessels, which
may weigh on imports of Russian oil and leave Russia with fewer outlets for its
flagship product, sources said. Reuters
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