Russian Oil Trade: India Slips to Third-Largest Buyer in December as Refinery Cuts Bite

India dropped to third place among buyers of Russian fossil fuels in December 2025 after sharp reductions in crude oil purchases by Reliance Industries and state-owned refiners, according to a European

think tank.Data from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) shows India’s imports of Russian hydrocarbons fell to €2.3 billion in December, down from €3.3 billion in November. Turkey overtook India to become the second-largest importer, buying Russian hydrocarbons worth €2.6 billion, while China retained the top position, accounting for 48%—around €6 billion—of Russia’s export revenues from the five largest buyers, said a TOI report.Crude oil continued to dominate India’s Russian imports, making up 78% of the total at €1.8 billion. Coal imports were valued at €424 million, while oil products accounted for €82 million. Overall, India’s Russian crude imports fell 29% month-on-month, marking their lowest level since the price-cap policy was introduced, despite a marginal increase in India’s total crude imports.The decline was driven primarily by Reliance Industries’ Jamnagar refinery, which halved its intake of Russian crude in December. CREA noted that all of Reliance’s December imports were supplied by Rosneft, based on cargoes purchased before US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions came into force.State-owned refiners also reduced Russian crude purchases by around 15% during the month. The pullback followed fresh US sanctions on major Russian oil producers Rosneft and Lukoil, aimed at curbing funding for the Ukraine war.As a result, companies including Reliance Industries, HPCL, HPCL-Mittal Energy and Mangalore Refinery have halted or scaled back Russian oil purchases, while Indian Oil Corporation continues to buy from non-sanctioned Russian entities.Russia’s share of India’s crude oil imports fell to about 25% in December, down from 35% in November. India had emerged as a major buyer of discounted Russian oil after Western sanctions were imposed following Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, significantly boosting Moscow’s presence in India’s crude basket.