India’s Russian oil imports touch record EUR 6.4 billion in October

China remained the largest global buyer of Russian fossil fuels, accounting for 51 per cent (EUR 10.7 billion) of Russia's export revenues from the top five importers.

New Delhi: India’s purchases of Russian fossil fuels surged to a record Euro 6.4 billion in October, driven by a sharp increase in crude oil imports, helping Moscow push its fossil fuel export revenues to their highest monthly level since December 2022 despite Western sanctions.

“India was the second-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels in October 2026, importing a total of EUR 6.4 billion of Russian hydrocarbons, its highest monthly total in data going back to January 2022. Crude oil constituted 91 per cent of India’s purchases, totalling EUR 5.8 billion. Coal (EUR 333 million) and oil products (EUR 232 million) constituted the remainder of its monthly Russian imports,” according to a monthly analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).

China remained the largest global buyer of Russian fossil fuels, accounting for 51 per cent (EUR 10.7 billion) of Russia’s export revenues from the top five importers.

“India’s imports of Russian crude oil rose in October 2026, up 10% month-on-month. Russian crude imports rose at all three of India’s largest importing refineries: (Nayara Energy’s) Vadinar (up 12 per cent month-on-month), (Reliance Industries Ltd’s) Jamnagar (up 22 per cent), and (Indian Oil Corporation Ltd’s) Paradip (up 28 per cent),” CREA said. “This increase has once again made the Jamnagar refinery the biggest importer of seaborne Russian crude.”

The EU was the third-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels, accounting for 11 per cent (EUR 2.2 billion) of Russia’s export revenues from the top five importers in October 2026.

Refineries in India, Turkiye, and Brunei that use Russian crude exported EUR 1.6 billion of oil products to countries that imposed sanctions on Russia for its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. “The destinations include the EU (EUR 1.2 billion), Australia (EUR 271 million), the US (EUR 94 million), and New Zealand (EUR 23 million). An estimated EUR 389 million of these products were refined from Russian crude.”

According to CREA, Russia’s fossil fuel export revenues surged to their highest monthly level in October since December 2022, rising 14 per cent from the previous month to EUR 754 million a day, as higher crude oil prices and record seaborne oil earnings offset Western sanctions and kept Moscow’s energy exports flowing.

China and India, the two largest buyers of Russian fossil fuels, recorded their highest monthly purchases since January 2022, highlighting Moscow’s continued dependence on Asian markets even as Western governments tighten restrictions on its energy trade, the think tank said.

China purchased Russian fossil fuels worth EUR 10.7 billion in October, while India’s imports amounted to EUR 6.4 billion. The European Union remained the third-largest buyer, with purchases of EUR 2.2 billion, followed by Turkiye at EUR 1.1 billion and South Korea at EUR 488 million.

The increase in revenues came despite broadly unchanged overall export volumes, pointing to the growing influence of higher international energy prices on Russia’s earnings. The surge also coincided with elevated global oil and gas prices amid the conflict in the Middle East and disruptions to energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz.

Russia‘s crude oil export revenues rose 19% month-on-month to EUR 449 million a day in October, the highest since June 2022, while export volumes increased 6 per cent.

Seaborne crude oil earnings jumped 23 per cent to EUR 352 million a day, the highest monthly level since CREA began tracking the data in January 2022. Pipeline crude revenues increased 6 per cent.

The average price of Russia’s Urals crude rose 13 per cent to USD 101.7 per barrel, its highest monthly average since October 2021 and more than double the EU and UK price cap of USD 44.1 per barrel, which took effect on February 1, 2026.

The discount on Urals crude against global benchmark Brent averaged USD 23 a barrel, or 19 per cent, in October, compared with USD 24, or 21 per cent, in September.

CREA estimated that higher oil and gas prices following the US-Israel strikes on Iran had boosted Russia’s seaborne fossil fuel export revenues by USD 35.9 billion, equivalent to around EUR 31 billion, over the subsequent six months.

Liquefied natural gas export revenues increased 3 per cent to EUR 77 million a day, their highest level since January 2023, despite a 4 per cent decline in unloaded volumes. Pipeline gas earnings rose 23 per cent to EUR 88 million a day, exceeding revenues from seaborne oil products for the first time since May 2022.

Revenue from seaborne oil product exports increased 4 per cent to EUR 85 million a day, although volumes fell 8 per cent. Coal export revenues declined 3 per cent to EUR 56 million a day.