India seen overtaking China as biggest importer of seaborne Russian crude

India, fuelled by its appetite for discounted Ural grades, is understood to have overtaken China as the top destination for seaborne Russian crude oil this month. The overall Russian crude oil imports to India are set to exceed 1 million barrels a day (b/d) in July, of which Urals crude has accounted for 880,000 b/d in the first 25 days, according to London-based energy analytics company Vortexa.

China’s import of seaborne Russian crude oil is likely to end July below India’s, although definitive Chinese numbers are not available.

“China and India continue to haul in Russian crude from the seaborne