Amid international sanctions imposed against Russia after its invasion of Ukraine in February, India’s imports from Russia have soared. India’s crude oil imports from Russia surged by 286% while coal imports (certain types) surged by over 345% in the January-April 2022 period. About 7.5% of India’s fuel needs (crude oil, coal, natural gas, etc.,) in April 2022 was sourced from Russia compared to 2% or less in many of the previous years. Russia was India’s sixth largest import partner in the April-May 2022 period. In several of the previous years, it had occupied the 20th position.
Imports from Russia
The graph depicts the items imported from Russia in 2022 (January to April). The bigger the square, the higher the import value in $million in the January-April 2022 period. The deeper the green, the more the increase in % terms compared to the five-year average between FY17 and FY21. For instance, India imported $1,526 million worth crude oil from Russia, 286% more than the FY17-FY21 average.
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Share of fuel
The table lists the share of a country in India’s total imports of mineral fuels/mineral oils (including crude oil, coal, coke, liquified natural gas, etc). India’s dependency on Russia for its fuel needs increased from around 2% in previous years to 7.5% in April 2022 (FY23). India reduced its energy dependence on Nigeria and Kuwait in April 2022.
Share of total imports
Overall, 4% of India’s imports came from Russia in April and May 2022 (FY23), a significant increase from around 1% in the years before. No other country’s share has increased considerably in this period. China’s share in India’s imports came down.
Ranking in total imports
The table lists the ranking of countries based on their share in India’s overall imports. Russia was ranked 20th or above in many previous years but jumped to the sixth position in the April-May 2022 (FY23) period.
Source: Commerce ministry
Also read: Data | India, China help lift Russia’s post-war crude oil exports
