India’s continued purchase of crude oil from Russia has played a significant role in stabilising global energy prices, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said during a press interaction in Vienna.
Puri warned that halting oil trade with Russia would have pushed crude prices soaring to over USD 120-130 per barrel, creating chaos in the international energy market.
Speaking to reporters, Puri noted that Russia produces more than nine million barrels of oil per day and remains one of the world’s largest crude suppliers.
He pointed out that if these barrels had suddenly disappeared from global supplies of around 97 million barrels a day, it would have been impossible for the world to cut consumption by over 10 per cent overnight.
“Imagine the chaos if this oil, amounting to about 10 per cent of the global oil supply, vanished from the market,” he said. “It would have forced the world to reduce its consumption, and since consumers would be chasing reduced supplies, the prices would have spiralled to over USD 120-130 per barrel.”
After the conflict between Russia and Ukraine erupted, the United States and Western nations imposed restrictions on Moscow. However, India continued to buy Russian oil, which Puri emphasised was never subject to global sanctions but only a price cap.
“Russian oil was never under global sanctions. Sensible decision makers around the world understood the realities of oil supply chains and how India helped the global markets by purchasing discounted oil under a price cap from wherever we could,” Puri said, defending India’s approach.
The Minister criticised commentators who questioned India’s oil imports from Russia, saying they lack an understanding of the complex dynamics of energy markets. “Some commentators, who do not understand how energy markets work, pass unnecessary judgments on our policies,” he added.
Puri underlined that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, India has been a “net positive contributor” to global energy price stability, successfully navigating the trilemma of energy availability, affordability and sustainability.
He also highlighted India’s commitment to energy security for its citizens, pointing out that the country provides clean cooking gas to 330 million households at among the lowest prices globally.
“We provide universal clean cooking to more than 103 million beneficiary families of the PM Ujjwala Scheme at just 0.4 dollars per kilogram or about seven to eight cents a day,” he said.
Looking ahead, India continues to expand its traditional fossil-based energy production and is now exploring the Andaman region. With a daily demand of about 5.4 million barrels, India is the world’s third-largest energy consumer and currently imports 80 per cent of its crude oil and 50 per cent of its natural gas needs.
India’s strategy now includes diversifying oil and gas imports from as many sources as possible. During the 9th OPEC International Seminar in Vienna, Puri held a series of bilateral and business meetings aimed at strengthening energy partnerships and supporting India’s growing energy demands.
He met Tareq Sulaiman Al-Roumi, Kuwait’s Minister of Oil and Chairman of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation. Discussions focused on strengthening ties with Kuwait, which is India’s sixth largest source of crude oil, fourth most significant source of LPG, and eighth largest hydrocarbon trade partner.
Puri also held talks with Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources. Their discussion built on a previous meeting at Davos in 2024 and explored ways to expand hydrocarbon trade further. Nigerian crude remains a key source for Indian refiners.
Additionally, Puri met Wael Sawan, CEO of Shell, to discuss collaboration opportunities as India rolls out ambitious plans to explore nearly 2.5 lakh square kilometres of new offshore and onshore areas — one of the world’s largest bidding rounds.
He noted that Shell’s advanced technologies could help India achieve its goal of increasing the share of natural gas in its energy mix from six per cent to 15 per cent.
In a separate meeting, Puri held discussions with Haitham Al Ghais, Secretary General of OPEC.
They reviewed India’s strong partnership with the oil producers’ group and exchanged views on keeping oil markets balanced and predictable, particularly in the face of geopolitical uncertainties, to support a smooth global transition towards green and alternative energy sources.
The Minister also met Murray Auchincloss, CEO of bp, to build on the company’s long-standing engagement in India’s upstream and downstream energy sectors.
Discussions covered India’s plans to ramp up domestic exploration and production, with over 2.5 lakh square kilometres set to be explored under OALP Round-10.
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