Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, India became a major buyer of Russian crude oil that was widely sanctioned by the West. That may be about to change.

On Jan. 10 the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned 161 tankers and traders involved in about 2,000 shipments since the invasion began. It also acted against Moscow-based ship insurers and two companies — Surgutneftgas and Gazpromneft — which in the first 10 months of last year accounted for almost 30% of Russia’s oil exports.

It is India's first tender for sour crude imports since March 2022. IOC and other Indian refiners have significantly increased purchases of Russian oil over the past two years, taking advantage of discounted prices after the West imposed sanctions on Moscow over its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.