Russian oil tankers pile up at sea as India cuts imports

Tuesday 13 January 2026 - 17:20

By: Dakir Madiha

Russian oil tankers pile up at sea as India cuts imports

Russian crude-loaded tankers are stacking up at sea, unable to offload cargo, as Moscow struggles to revive its Indian market lifeline that rescued its oil trade after European buyers pulled back following the Ukraine invasion. Russia shipped 3.42 million barrels per day over the four weeks ending January 11, 2026, per Bloomberg-compiled vessel tracking data. That marks a drop of about 450,000 barrels daily from pre-Christmas peaks, highlighting how Western sanctions are starting to squeeze the Kremlin's vital energy revenues.

The decline mirrors India's sharp pullback, once a top Russian crude client. Indian Russian crude imports plunged 29 percent in December 2025 from the prior month, hitting the lowest level since the G7's $60-per-barrel price cap took effect in December 2022, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air. Reliance Industries, operator of the world's largest single-site refining complex at Jamnagar, drove much of the cut by halving its Russian crude purchases that month. All its December deliveries came from Rosneft but involved pre-U.S. sanctions cargoes. The company stated this month it expects no Russian crude deliveries in January.

"Reliance Industries' Jamnagar refinery has received no Russian oil cargoes for about three weeks and anticipates no Russian crude deliveries in January," the firm said in a statement. Indian public refiners also trimmed Russian imports by 15 percent in December, with firms like Hindustan Petroleum Corporation and Mangalore Refinery suspending or curbing buys. These reductions follow U.S. sanctions imposed in October 2025 on Russia's two largest oil producers, Rosneft and Lukoil, aimed at curbing Moscow's Ukraine war funding.

Turkey has now overtaken India as the second-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels for the first time in nearly three years, snapping up about €2.6 billion worth in December. China remains the top purchaser, accounting for 48 percent of Russia's export revenues from major importers. Pressure on India extends beyond sanctions: President Donald Trump warned on January 5 that the U.S. could hike tariffs further if New Delhi fails to cap Russian oil buys. The U.S. has already doubled import duties on Indian goods to 50 percent, with 25 percent tied specifically to Russian oil imports. Senator Lindsey Graham announced this month that Trump approved a bill that could slap up to 500 percent tariffs on countries buying Russian energy.

Russia's monthly fossil fuel export revenues dipped 2 percent in December to around €500 million daily, the second-lowest since the full-scale Ukraine invasion began in February 2022, per CREA. Russian Urals crude prices have plunged, with Bloomberg estimating the grade dipped below $35 per barrel amid intensifying sanctions pressure. This has forced tankers to linger longer at sea: average transit times for ESPO crude shipped from Russia's Pacific Kozmino port to Chinese harbors stretched beyond 12 days for November-loaded vessels, up from just over eight days in August. Some ships have idled at anchor for weeks awaiting discharge, while others reroute around the Cape of Good Hope to dodge scrutiny.