India’s savings from discount Russian crude since 2022 have reached $12.6 billion, the Indian Express has calculated, although there could be much higher implied savings, the media outlet reported.
The implied savings stem from the fact that India’s Russian oil ramp-up helped avoid a major international oil price hike following the events from February 2022, when Russian troops entered eastern Ukraine, and the European Union, the UK, the U.S., and Canada rushed to impose sanctions on Moscow, specifically targeting the energy industry.
However, none of these countries would have enjoyed a Brent crude spike above $100 for more than a few months, and indeed none of them did enjoy the spike while it lasted. So it was made sure that prices would decline, including by redirecting the flow of Russian oil from the West to the East, notably to China and India.
According to the Indian Express report, “This may be among the reasons why India has shown no signs of buckling under American pressure on the issue of oil imports from Russia.” The pressure has recently intensified, with the White House senior counselor for trade and manufacturing accusing India of “profiteering” from Russian oil imports.
Peter Navarro also claimed that India was “nothing but a laundromat for the Kremlin”, referring to New Delhi importing cheap Russian oil and selling the refined fuels at higher prices in Europe and Asia.
In a response this week, India’s oil minister noted that “Russian oil has never been sanctioned like Iranian or Venezuelan crude; it is under a G-7/European Union price cap system deliberately designed to keep oil flowing while capping revenues.” Hardeep Singh Puri added that “India’s adherence to all international norms prevented a catastrophic $200 per barrel shock,” and that “there is no substitute for the world’s second-largest producer supplying nearly 10% of global oil.”
By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com
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