Europe likes refined Russian oil more and more

India, for which Russia has become the main supplier of oil, is increasing the supply of diesel and jet fuel to Europe. This is happening despite the fact that tankers still have to go to EU countries by a longer route — bypassing the Suez Canal.

Indian refineries are increasing the supply of petroleum products to Europe — both diesel fuel and aviation kerosene. For the six months of the fiscal year that began in India in April, to the countries The EU supplied 40% more diesel than a year earlier — 58.4 million barrels. Aviation fuel supplies increased by 38% to 47.9 million barrels. Such data is published by the Ministry of Trade and Industry of India.

Supplies are growing, despite the fact that most of the tankers continue to bypass the Red Sea and the Suez Canal due to the threat of shelling by the Houthis and take a longer route around Africa.

According to the Indian department, this fiscal year the revenues of Indian refineries from the export of petroleum products to Europe increased by 36% to $ 11.27 billion in six months.

The main client of Indian refineries continues to be the Netherlands, which is an international hub for the trade in petroleum products. The country accounts for the lion's share of India — both in aviation fuel and diesel. The UK is the next largest buyer of Indian aviation kerosene, and France is the largest buyer of diesel fuel. Belgium and Romania have reduced imports of petroleum products from India this year.

Obviously, Indian oil products continue to be one of the most competitive, as their volumes when exported to Europe exceeded American ones in the first half of the year.

Deliveries of Indian petroleum products have repeatedly caused noisy statements by politicians from the European Union, as the country has become one of the largest importers of Russian oil and jet fuel and diesel fuel for the EU is also produced from raw materials from Russia. However, refined Russian oil is not subject to sanctions when supplied to EU countries.

"Taking advantage of the loophole in the sanctions on oil refining, India has become the largest exporter of petroleum products to the EU. In the first three quarters of 2024, exports to the EU from Jamnagar, Vadinar (in Gujarat) and the new refinery in Mangalore, which are increasingly dependent on Russian oil, increased by another 58 percent year—on-year," according to the latest report from the Center for Energy and Clean Air Research (CREA).