Russia turns to India for petrol as Ukraine pummels refineries

MOSCOW – Russia has started importing petrol from as far away as India, as Ukrainian attacks on its refineries trigger severe local shortages.

It is the first time Moscow has imported the motor fuel from the South Asian nation, according to Kpler data, with the lengthy journey required an indication of how dire the crunch is becoming.

The first shipment was received on Aug 5, and more may be on the way. According to Kpler. Indian processor Nayara Energy – backed by Rosneft, Russia’s top oil producer – has emerged as a source of the fuel, which is being moved on a chain of Russian-linked tankers via transfers off Egypt.

“The emergence of Indian barrels is particularly notable,” said Sumit Ritolia, lead analyst at Kpler.

The cargoes, which complement continued imports from Belarus and other neighbouring markets, highlight “the severity of the current domestic petrol imbalance, and the extent to which lower refinery runs are reshaping Russia’s traditional product trade flows”, he said.

The global energy market is coping with the fallout from two major conflicts, as Kyiv presses on with its assault on Russia’s refineries, while the US and Iran continue to face off in the Middle East.

The combined disruptions have acted to tighten fuel markets, with Moscow – traditionally a supplier of fuels overseas – banning both petrol and diesel exports to prioritise local users.

Following a wave of attacks, EA Analytics estimated that Russia’s crude-processing rates were running at 3.6 million barrels a day in July, about a third below the seasonal norm.

Since then, Kyiv has intensified strikes, hitting five processors last week and at least two more this week.

Russia’s Energy Ministry, India’s Oil Ministry, and Nayara’s communications team did not respond to Bloomberg requests for comment.

Since getting sanctioned by the European Union in July 2025, Nayara has been relying on so-called dark-fleet tankers and trans-shipment operations to receive its crude, and export fuels.

Its 400,000 barrel-a-day refinery at Vadinar on India’s west coast also needs to widen its export market, after a key buyer, Hindustan Petroleum, recently started producing more of its own fuel in the region.

For the inaugural shipment, Russian-flagged products tanker Cyclone (formerly Agni) loaded a 42,000 tonne petrol cargo from Vadinar on June 18, ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg shows.

The fuel was then transferred to the Oman-flagged Garnet at Damietta Port, off Egypt’s Mediterranean coast, on July 6. That vessel then reached Russia in early August.

More petrol may follow. The products tanker Varg loaded nearly 40,000 tonnes of the fuel at Vadinar on July 6 and likely conducted a ship-to-ship transfer at Damietta in late July, based on changes in its draft, according to Kpler.

Ship-to-ship transfers, or STS, typically take place so that individual vessels can cut travel times.

No receiving vessel has been confirmed, though Kpler identified Beast as a possibility.

The vessel was at Damietta and recorded an increase in draft on July 30 and 31.

Beast had signalled Morocco’s Tangier as a destination, but has since gone beyond that port and is now sailing north in the Atlantic Ocean, with its cargo intact, the data shows.

Another products tanker, Cameroon-flagged Photon, also left Vadinar on July 13 before transferring its petrol cargo at Damietta to the Russia-flagged Talisman on July 28 and 29, the data shows.

These ships were classed on the Russian register, with the exception of Garnet.

All of them have been sanctioned by the European Union, with Garnet and Talisman also being targeted by the US.

“The final destination of Talisman and Beast remain unconfirmed but, the emerging trading pattern suggests Damietta STS hub continues to facilitate the movement of Indian-origin petrol toward Russian import channels,” Kpler said. BLOOMBERG