Russia has surpassed the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to become India's top naphtha supplier, taking advantage of discounted Russian oil products and the re-routing of trade flows in the aftermath of Moscow's Ukraine invasion [a816b7e4].
India imported about 670,000 tonnes of naphtha from the UAE between January and September, a decrease from around 726,000 tonnes in the same period last year. On the other hand, naphtha supplies to India from the UAE dipped to 686,000 tons in January-September from about 697,000 tonnes in the first nine months of last year. This decline in imports from the UAE allowed Russia to emerge as the top supplier of naphtha to India [a816b7e4].
India shipped in a total of 2.1 million metric tonnes of naphtha between January and September, with 37% or 770,000 tonnes being of Russian origin. Despite this surge in buying, India ranks only seventh among importers of Russian naphtha. It is worth noting that India itself is a major naphtha producer and exporter [a816b7e4].
Reliance Industries, the operator of the world's largest oil refining complex, imported most of the Russian naphtha. However, it is important to mention that India's imports of Russian naphtha are relatively low compared to other countries [a816b7e4].
The shift in India's naphtha supplier highlights the impact of discounted Russian oil products and the re-routing of trade flows due to geopolitical events. It also underscores India's strategic approach to diversifying its sources of naphtha and taking advantage of favorable pricing [a816b7e4].