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Saudi and Iraqi Oil Exports to India’s Nayara Halt Amid EU Sanctions
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Saudi Aramco and Iraq’s state oil company SOMO have suspended crude oil sales to India’s Nayara Energy following European Union sanctions imposed in July against the Russian-backed refiner, three sources told Reuters on September 1.
The move has forced Nayara, which is majority-owned by Russian entities including oil giant Rosneft, to rely entirely on Russian crude for its imports in August, according to industry sources and LSEG shipping data.
Nayara typically receives around 2 million barrels of Iraqi crude and 1 million barrels of Saudi crude each month. However, shipping data from Kpler and LSEG confirmed that no deliveries from either SOMO or Saudi Aramco arrived in August, Reuters reported. The last cargo of Basra crude was discharged on July 29 at Vadinar port by the VLCC Kalliopi, while the last Saudi shipment—1 million barrels of Arab Light co-loaded with Basrah Heavy—was received on July 18 aboard the VLCC Georgios.
According to Reuters, two sources said the EU sanctions created payment difficulties for Nayara’s purchases from SOMO, without elaborating further.
A Russian Embassy official in New Delhi confirmed last month that Nayara is now receiving direct supplies from Rosneft.
Nayara operates a 400,000 barrel-per-day refinery in Vadinar, western India. Due to sanctions-related complications affecting product sales, the refinery is currently running at only 70–80% of its capacity, sources said.
Earlier, it was reported that Nayara Energy is on track to receive the lowest crude oil volumes in its history this month as a result of European Union sanctions.
Ship-tracking data indicates that Nayara is expected to import just under 94,000 barrels of crude per day in August—a sharp drop compared to nearly 366,000 barrels per day in August 2024.
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