At least four tankers carrying Russian oil are reportedly idling off India’s western coast after local refineries refused to accept the shipments, Bloomberg reported on August 1, citing vessel tracking data.
The Achilles and Elyte tankers, each carrying around 700,000 barrels of Urals crude, are anchored near the port city of Jamnagar. The vessels loaded their cargo in late June from the Russian ports of Primorsk and Ust-Luga and were scheduled to offload on August 2 and 3. Both ships are under EU and UK sanctions, raising compliance concerns for potential buyers.
Two additional tankers—Destan and Horae—are also waiting offshore with Russian oil loaded between June 24 and July 1. The Destan, which is also sanctioned by the EU and UK, is expected to reach the port of Sikka in the coming days. The Horae, not currently subject to Western sanctions, has yet to declare a destination.
According to Bloomberg more than a third of India’s oil imports come from Russia, making it one of the country’s most significant energy partners. However, the flow of Russian crude has come under renewed scrutiny following the EU’s latest round of sanctions in mid-July.
This week, the Trump administration cited India’s continued purchases of Russian oil as grounds for imposing steep import tariffs, also warning of further unspecified penalties. In response, New Delhi has asked domestic refiners to prepare and share contingency plans for sourcing crude from alternative suppliers, Bloomberg reported.
Despite mounting pressure, remains confident in its energy security. Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri said the country can meet its oil needs through alternative sources if Russian supplies are affected.
“I’m not worried at all. If something happens, we’ll deal with it,” Puri said at an industry event in New Delhi. “India has diversified the sources of supply and we have gone, I think, from about 27 countries that we used to buy from to about 40 countries now.”
Earlier, it was reported that the US President Donald Trump is reportedly weighing a major escalation of sanctions on Russian oil exports, including the introduction of a sweeping 500% global tariff on Russian crude.
According to the report by The Times, Trump is now “closely studying” a proposed bill that would impose the tariff not only on Russia, but also on countries such as China, India, and Turkey that continue to import Russian energy.
Source: united24media
