Tankers carrying Russian Sokol oil returned to Indian ports – Kommersant

Near Indian ports there are three tankers with Russian Sokol oil, supplies of which to India have been suspended since the end of 2023, writes Bloomberg. According to the agency, taking into account the arriving tankers waiting at the ports, the supply volume could reach 18 million barrels.

According to Bloomberg, the Nireta tanker with Russian oil is located near the city of Visakhapatnam (south-eastern part of India), and the other two – Eastern Avenue and Erector – are expected near Jamnagar. According to the agency, all Sokol oil tankers loaded in March and most of those sent in February arrived in China, but some are gradually returning to India.

How wrote Reuters, in 2023, Indian refineries had to stop purchasing Sokol amid tightening US control over the supply of Russian oil at a price above the ceiling. Unnamed refinery executives told Bloomberg they had agreed to supply through traders at “attractive discounts” in 2024.

In February, Reuters, citing sources, reported that the Indian company Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Limited purchased Sokol from a trader and will pay for it in UAE dirhams. On February 13, according to the agency, a ship with 710 thousand barrels was unloaded at the port of Mumbai, three more ships were supposed to arrive at the eastern Indian ports of Paradip and Visakhapatnam.

Sokol oil is produced at Sakhalin-1. India did not receive this grade of oil in December and January. Shortly before this, the country’s government recommended that Indian refineries not pay for Russian oil in yuan, the media wrote. At the same time, Indian Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri claimed that there were no problems with payment, supplies were reduced due to unattractive prices. Last December, data Bloomberg, tankers carrying 5 million barrels were idling several miles offshore.

Read more about oil supplies to India in the Kommersant article. “They cut off bonuses from Russia”.

Lusine Balasyan