US sanctions law could raise India’s crude oil import costs

The Story in Brief

Indian state-run oil refiners are preparing for costlier crude as the US Senate passes the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026. The bill, headed to the House, would let the US president impose tariffs up to 100% on top-five importers of Russian oil and gas, including India. Refiners have supplies tied up for the next 50 days but will start floating tenders for post-September cargoes around mid-August, an executive said. India's crude import bill hit $49.8 billion in the April-June quarter, up 60% year-on-year, even as volumes fell to 60 million tonnes from 62.6 million tonnes. Every $1 per barrel increase adds about ₹18,000 crore to India's annual import bill. If Russian crude is sanctioned, India may fall back on West Asian barrels, but those would cost more due to longer shipping routes and higher insurance premiums through the Suez Canal. Kpler analyst Sumit Ritolia said replacing Russian crude at current volumes would be challenging or impossible without tightening global balances and pushing prices higher. The government and refiners did not respond to queries.