Mukesh Ambani may make big move as EU, US pressure rises on Russian oil, Reliance boss may....
Mukesh Ambani News: In a major development, Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries may be shifting away from its dependence on Russian oil due to the escalating risk of secondary sanctions from the US and NATO. As per a Bloomberg report, Reliance Industries bought Murban crude from Abu Dhabi late last week. It is important to note that Murban isn't a regular buyer of the UAE grade. It is a premium crude that tends to be costlier than its regular appetite of Russian Urals and heavier Middle Eastern varieties.
The report further adds that Reliance had begun looking for ways to diversify its crude purchases away from Russia. The revelation comes as the European Union introduced fresh punitive measures this month against Russia's energy sector, including restrictions affecting the Vadinar refinery in Gujarat.
To recall, the Indian refiners had increased their purchase after Europe and the US shunned Russian crudes in 2022. This led to a deep cargo discount. These were refined to produce fuels such as diesel before being resold to Western customers. The European Union has recently announced a ban on the import of diesel and other petroleum products derived from Russian crude oil. It has also placed direct sanctions on Nayara Energy — a refinery backed by Russian oil major Rosneft. Here are some of the key details: Reliance has emerged as one of the biggest 'beneficiaries' of the Ukraine-Russia conflict.
Moscow has supplied almost half of Reliance's crude imports so far this year, as per the Ship-tracking data compiled by Kpler.
Around one-fifth of the processor's total product exports were subsequently sold to Europe.
Refining Russian crude into diesel for export to Europe has brought Reliance under scrutiny as part of the EU's latest efforts to pressure Moscow, with the ban scheduled to take effect on January 21 next year.
Despite initial signs of a pivot towards the Middle East, it remains unclear how the mega refiner will source close to 600,000 barrels a day of crude from other producers, and at what cost. Is India dependent on Russian oil imports?
During the first half of 2025, Indian oil imports from Russia rose marginally. According to the reports, nearly 35 percent of overall supplies came from Russia. Private refiners such as Reliance Industries Ltd and Nayara Energy made up approximately half of the purchases from Moscow.
New Delhi has repeatedly stressed the need to avoid 'double standards' as top US and NATO officials threaten to impose 100% secondary sanctions on nations still importing Russian oil.
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