NEW DELHI — Driven by severe maritime disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz following the military conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran, India’s crude oil import strategy underwent a massive realignment during the April–June 2026 quarter. Industry data reveals that India’s oil imports from the Middle East plunged by 27% to 1.55 million barrels per day (bpd). To prevent catastrophic supply shortfalls, Indian refiners aggressively ramped up procurement from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)—primarily Russia—which saw an 8.3% increase to 2.26 million bpd, alongside higher volumes of heavier crude grades from Brazil, Venezuela, and Angola.
While New Delhi had previously scaled back Russian purchases to bypass Western sanctions, a temporary Washington waiver prompted a dramatic pivot back to Moscow. In June alone, India’s Russian oil imports surged by 37.4% month-on-month to a record-breaking 2.64 million bpd, effectively accounting for half of the nation’s total 5.24 million bpd import volume. Consequently, Russia’s share in India’s total quarterly import mix climbed to 41%, while the Middle East’s share shrank from 41.4% last year to just 31%. Although the temporary U.S. waiver on Russian oil has since been withdrawn following the collapse of a brief Washington-Tehran truce in early July, Indian refiners continue to bypass constraints by sourcing from non-sanctioned entities. Refiners note that if the Strait remains paralyzed or if Yemen’s Houthi forces disrupt Red Sea lanes, India may have to resort to routing Saudi oil—which reached 403,000 bpd in June via the Yanbu port—around the Cape of Good Hope at a significantly higher freight cost.
