BPCL to cut Russian oil imports in November — OilPrice

Indian state-owned oil refining company Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) will reduce purchases of Russian oil in November. High transportation costs and premiums on Russian crude have made offers from the Middle East more commercially attractive for the company, OilPrice reports.

Share of Russian oil

BPCL finance chief Vetsa Ramakrishna Gupta said during a discussion of quarterly results with analysts that Russian oil purchase volumes in November would be significantly lower. From July through September, Russian oil accounted for 37% of all crude supplies to BPCL.

At the same time, Gupta noted that purchases of Russian oil may increase at the end of the year. According to him, the premium on Russian oil for December cargoes has fallen to $1–2 per barrel, compared with up to $13 per barrel for cargoes in the current month.

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Change in import structure

BPCL's decision reflects a broader trend of declining Indian imports of Russian oil due to higher costs compared with Middle Eastern supplies. According to vessel-tracking data cited by Reuters, India imported 2.8 million barrels of oil per day from the Middle East in September, 32% more than in August and the highest level since February.

Russia remained the largest individual oil supplier to India in September, but the volume of supplies fell by 14% from August to 1.8 million barrels per day. The share of Russian oil in India's imports declined from 46.6% in August to 33.5% in September.