Indian state-owned oil companies have stopped purchasing crude oil from Russia following threats and repeated warnings from U.S. President Donald Trump.
Reuters reported on Thursday, July 31, citing multiple sources, that India's state-owned oil companies—the world's third-largest oil importers and currently the biggest buyers of Russian crude by sea—have found themselves in a difficult position.
These companies have not purchased any oil from Russia in the past week due to the reduced discounts on Russian oil and the warnings from the U.S. President.
According to the sources, the four major state-owned oil refining companies in India—Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL), and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals (MRPL)—have not placed any new orders for Russian oil in the last week.
However, Reuters stated that IOC, HPCL, BPCL, MRPL, and India’s central Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas did not respond to requests for comment.
The report also noted that these four state-owned companies typically buy Russian crude oil on a term-supply basis.
However, they are now turning to the spot market to find alternative sources, particularly considering options like Abu Dhabi's Murban crude and oil from West Africa.
Reuters mentioned that the combined refining capacity of India's oil companies is approximately 5.2 million barrels per day, with state-owned companies accounting for more than 60% of this capacity.
However, the country's private refiners, Reliance Industries and Nayara Energy, remain the largest buyers of Russian oil.
On July 14, Donald Trump issued a warning that he would impose a 100% tariff on countries that buy Russian oil if Russia and Ukraine did not reach a major peace agreement.
In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday night, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that, in addition to a 25% tariff on India, he would impose an extra penalty for buying Russian oil.
In another post on Truth Social on Thursday, he said he did not care about the relationship between Moscow and New Delhi, stating that the two countries could "destroy their dead economies" together if they wished.
Trump further added, "I don't care what India does with Russia. They can go and sink their dead economies together if they want. We do very little business with India. Their tariffs are so high—they are one of the highest tariff countries in the world. Similarly, the United States does not have much trade with Russia. I want to keep it that way."
