Oil sales to India jumped 22 times in 2022: Russia Deputy PM Alexander Novak

Russia Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said that oil supplies to India jumped 22-fold last year. He said that Russia needs to focus on boosting energy exports to ‘friendly’ countries. 

Novak said that energy revenues accounted for 42 per cent of Russia’s federal budget in 2022. Despite the challenges faced by Russia’s energy industry due to Western sanctions, it remains sustainable, he added.

India is the world’s third-largest importer of oil and Russia became its leading supplier after Europe shunned Moscow’s supplies following its invasion of Ukraine in February last year. Following the sanctions, India displaced Europe as Russia’s top customer for seaborne oil. It increased its imports of Russian oil 16-fold, and Russian crude accounted for about a third of its total imports. 

While India does not recognise the sanctions against Moscow, the majority of purchases of Russian oil in any currency have complied with them, trade sources said, and almost all sales have taken place at levels below the price cap.

India has prepared a framework for settling trade with Russia in Indian rupees should rouble transactions be cut off by further sanctions.

(With Reuters inputs)

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