New Delhi: India’s energy import strategy is a sovereign decision and it will continue to purchase Russian crude oil and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) despite the expiration of the 30-day sanction waiver from the US on April 11, 2026.
This was disclosed by officials, as per a report in Mint. Indian refineries plan to continue with their previous procurement policy of sourcing energy from non-sanction entities and vehicles, even as the US has decided not to renew the sanctions waiver,
The US’ 30-day sanction waiver for purchasing Iranian oil is also coming to an end. The US Treasury Department announced that it will be moving with “economic fury”, in a post on X,
It also announced that the administration is considering further secondary sanctions against any country that is considering support for Iran’s activities. However, it did not specify Russian oil and quietly allowed the sanction waiver to expire.
The sanction waiver is a US prerogative and does not determine India’s import strategy, the official cited by Mint said.
“Efforts are on for further LPG purchases from Russia. Also, import of both crude and LPG is likely to continue from non-sanctioned entities,” said the official as quoted by Mint.
According to the report, Indian refineries are already renegotiating future cargoes after securing 800,000 tonnes of LPG supplies from Australia, Russia and the US.
In March 2026, imports from Russia averaged 1.98-2.06 million barrels per day, the highest level since mid-2023, global energy and maritime intelligence firms, most notably Kpler and Vortexa have noted, as reported by WION.
Russian crude accounted for 35.9 per cent of India’s total crude imports in 2023-24 and 35.8 per cent in 2024-25. India was the second-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels in March after China, importing Russian hydrocarbons worth 5.8 billion euros, it has been reported.
The official maintained that the number of Russian shipments contracted remains limited and is yet to reach India. “Even now, the quantum of import (from Russia) tied up is not very significant, and talks are on for more LPG supplies,” said the official to Mint.
“The biggest shift was in state-owned refineries’ imports from Russia, which saw a massive 148% increase, presumably due to Russian barrels being more available in the spot market, which serves as their primary source of imports,” Mint reported, citing a Crea report.
India plans to continue to buy energy, particularly LPG, from every possible source. “The US will be the primary source for LPG till West Asia supplies don’t pick up. And regarding crude, the waiver did help, but imports from clean, non-sanctioned entities will continue as was the case earlier,” an executive at an oil refining company said.
“We have been buying oil from diversified sources,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal has said.
Petroleum Ssecretary Neeraj Mittal said that India procures crude from 41 countries compared with 27 earlier. LNG imports currently come from 30 countries compared to six previously, while LPG is sourced from 16 countries compared to 10 earlier.
