Crude Oil Crunch:India Bets on 40 countries to Stay Afloat

India’s crude oil imports fell by 17 per cent year-on-year in March 2026 to 18.9 million metric tonnes, as the ongoing West Asia crisis forces the country to rewrite its crude oil supply chains.

The drop from 22.8 MMT in March 2025 reflects the impact of the crisis triggered by US military confrontation with Iran, placing the Strait of Hormuz, the major checkpoint of oil exports, under threat of disruption, as per provisional data from the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC).

The Strait of Hormuz is the world’s most crucial trade corridor, with around one-fifth of global crude supplies passing through it daily. Currently, the strait is under a de facto closure from April 18, 2026, until the US lifts its blockade of Iranian ports.

India’s bulk supply of energy came from the Gulf, and nearly 55 percent of its crude oil imports flowed through the Strait of Hormuz. It was a convenient and close route for exports, and all Indian refineries were designed around it. When the US went to war with Iran, the Strait became a target rather than a trade route. India, which consumes 55 lakh barrels of crude oil per day, suddenly faced a supply crisis.

The government responded swiftly to the condition by diversifying its crude oil source. India decided to import crude oil from around 40 different countries. As a result of this diversification, about 70 percent of crude oil imports now come from routes outside the Strait of Hormuz.

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As per the reports from Centre for Research in Energy and Clean Air (CREA), India has seen a 15 percent reduction of crude oil purchase from Russia. India has imported crude oil worth EUR 4.5 billion in April compared to EUR 5.3 billion in the previous month. As per CREA, India is the second largest purchaser of Russian crude oil, importing a total of €5 billion of Russian hydrocarbons.

As per CREA reports, "Crude oil constituted 90 per cent of India's purchases, totaling €4.5 billion. Coal (€297 million) and oil products (EUR 209 million) constituted the remainder of their monthly imports.”

India imported a total of EUR 5.8 billion worth of Russian hydrocarbons in March. In the same month, crude oil products constituted 91 percent of India’s total imports, totaling €5.3 billion. Coal (€337 million) and oil products (€178.5 million) constitute the rest.

This decline in Russian crude oil imports is driven by Nayara Energy's Vadinar refinery undergoing maintenance. The company has closed down for maintenance from April 9. Nayara’s Vadinar refinery, located in Gujarat, is India’s second largest oil refinery, having a refining capacity of 20 million metric tonnes per annum. Russian oil giant Rosneft is a major shareholder in the company.

State-owned refineries in Mangalore and Visakhapatnam have stopped their Russian oil imports in November 2025 but resumed the purchases in March 2026, with Visakhapatnam's Russian imports increasing by 149 per cent month-on-month.