What a cut in Reliance’s Russian crude purchases would mean for India
The Reliance Industries Ltd. oil refinery in Jamnagar, Gujarat, India, on Saturday, July 31, 2021.
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India’s largest private oil refiner Reliance Industries is reportedly halting purchases of Russian crude, following the U.S.’ decision to sanction Russia’s two largest oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil.
Reliance has become a major buyer of Russian crude. In September, it purchased around 629,590 barrels of Russian crude per day from the two firms, out of India’s total imports of 1.6 million barrels per day, according to data by commodities data analytics firm Kpler.
Over the same month last year, Reliance purchased around 428,000 barrels per day of oil from the Russian companies.
In fact, India’s Russian crude imports used to account for less than 3% of its total crude import basket, but today account for one-third of India’s crude imports, experts say.
Reliance has not responded to CNBC requests for comment on reports that it is stopping the purchase of Russian crude.
It comes as the U.S. Treasury Department on Wednesday levied sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil, citing Moscow’s “lack of serious commitment” to ending the war in Ukraine. The sanctions aim to “degrade” the Kremlin’s ability to finance its war, the U.S. department said, signaling more measures could follow.
If Reliance does halt Russian purchases, it will have “negative impacts on [Reliance’s] margin and profitability as Russian crude constitute more than 50% of [its] crude diet,” Pankaj Srivastava, SVP of commodity oil markets at market research firm Rystad Energy said in emailed comments.
He added that the availability of “similar crude is not an issue” and can be sourced from West Asia, Brazil, or Guyana, but Reliance is unlikely to get the same price as it does on Russian crude, as it has long-term deals with suppliers like Rosneft.
Last December, Reliance Industries signed a deal to import crude oil worth $12 billion-$13 billion a year from Russia’s Rosneft for 10 years, which would translate to roughly 500,000 barrels per day, according to a report by Reuters.
‘Opportunistic buying’
The purchase of Russian oil by Indian refiners was “opportunistic buying” driven by discounts versus comparable grades, said Vandana Hari of Vanda Insights.
India bought 38% of Russia’s crude exports in September, second only to China at 47% according to Helsinki-based think tank Centre for Energy and Clean Air.
Hari added that Indian refineries can easily pivot to buying from sources with the trade-off being “pressure on refining margins.”
Muyu Xu, senior crude oil analyst at Kpler, said the Indian refining giant might face some short-term issues as it looks to replace the Russian crude.
“Given the large volumes under the Reliance-Rosneft deal, we expect some short-term friction for Reliance in securing replacement barrels,” says Muyu Xu, senior crude oil analyst at Kpler.
She added that “Russia’s medium-sour Urals remains about $5–6/bbl [barrel] cheaper than Middle Eastern crude of similar quality.
A report by Jefferies last month indicated that the impact of Reliance Industries moving away from Russian oil was “manageable.”
The brokerage said in September that it had received queries from investors about the possible financial impact on Reliance if it halts its imports of Russian oil due to sanctions.
The benefit of Russian crude accounts for around 2.1% of the firm’s estimated consolidated EBITDA of 2.05 trillion rupees ($ 22.8 billion) for fiscal year 2027, the brokerage said.
Reliance’s consolidated EBITDA for the six months of fiscal year 2026 was 1.08 trillion Indian rupees ($12.3 billion), of which 295 billion rupees were from its oil-to-chemicals segment, while its telecom and retail ventures together contributed to nearly 500 billion rupees.
Hopes of a U.S. trade deal
Other Indian refiners are also looking to cut imports of Russian oil. Weaning off Russian oil might raise India’s import bill, but it won’t be “as big a sticker shock as [it] might have been if crude was in the $70 or $80 range,” said Hari of Vanda Insights.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures were trading around $61.83 a barrel on Friday.
Experts also say the benefits of India cutting back on Russian oil purchases outweigh the downsides.
According to Natixis’ Senior Economist Trinh Nguyen, the arbitrage that Russian oil offered during the energy crisis has tapered off, and there is no need for India now to have significant purchases of Russian oil.
India’s Russian crude purchase has been a sore point in its trade relations with the U.S., which culminated in the U.S. imposing a total 50% tariff on Indian goods exported to the U.S..
With both state-owned and private refiners expected to halt purchase of Russian crude — a long-standing demand of U.S. President Donald Trump — the chances of India negotiating a mutually beneficial trade deal with the U.S. have increased.
— CNBC’s Ying Shan Lee contributed to this report
First Solar just cut the ribbon on a huge new factory in Iberia Parish, Louisiana, and it dwarfs the New Orleans Superdome. The company’s $1.1 billion, fully vertically integrated facility spans 2.4 million square feet, or about 11 times the size of the stadium’s main arena.
The factory began production quietly in July, a few months ahead of schedule, and employs more than 700 people. First Solar expects that number to hit 826 by the end of the year. Once it’s fully online, the site will add 3.5 GW of annual manufacturing capacity. That brings the company’s total US footprint to 14 GW in 2026 and 17.7 GW in 2027, when its newly announced South Carolina plant is anticipated to come online.
The Louisiana plant produces First Solar’s Series 7 modules using US-made materials — glass from Illinois and Ohio, and steel from Mississippi, which is fabricated into backrails in Louisiana.
The new factory leans heavily on AI, from computer vision that spots defects on the line to deep learning tools that help technicians make real‑time adjustments.
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry says the investment is already a win for the region, bringing in “hundreds of good-paying jobs and new opportunities for Louisiana workers and businesses.” A new economic impact analysis from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette projects that the factory will boost Iberia Parish’s GDP by 4.4% in its first full year at capacity. The average manufacturing compensation package comes in at around $90,000, more than triple the parish’s per capita income.
First Solar CEO Mark Widmar framed the new facility as a major step for US clean energy manufacturing: “By competitively producing energy technology in America with American materials, while creating American jobs, we’re demonstrating that US reindustrialization isn’t just a thesis, it’s an operating reality.”
This site joins what’s already the largest solar manufacturing and R&D footprint in the Western Hemisphere: three factories in Ohio, one in Alabama, and R&D centers in Ohio and California. Just last week, First Solar announced a new production line in Gaffney, South Carolina, to onshore more Series 6 module work. By the end of 2026, the company expects to directly employ more than 5,500 people across the US.
Read more: First Solar pours $330M into a new South Carolina solar factory
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No, it’s not the new Bolt. GM’s design team previewed a new high-riding “sporty Chevrolet EV” that should be brought to life.
Is Chevy launching a new sporty EV?
This is the all-electric vehicle Chevy should sell in the US. General Motors’ design team released a series of sketches previewing a sporty new Chevy EV.
Although it kinda looks like the new 2027 Chevy Bolt EV as a higher-sitting compact crossover SUV, the design offers a fresh take on what it should have looked like.
The new Bolt is essentially a modernized version of the outgoing EUV model with a similar compact crossover silhouette. Nissan adopted a similar style with the new 2026 LEAF as buyers continue shifting from smaller sedans and hatchbacks to crossovers and SUVs.
Will we see the sporty Chevy EV in real life? It’s not likely. For one, the “exploration sketch” is by GM China Advanced designer Charles Huang.
GM Design posted the sketches on its global social media page, but the caption read “Sporty Chevrolet EV for the China Market.”
It’s too bad. The Bolt could use a sporty sibling like an SS variant. Chevy introduced the Blazer EV SS (check out our review) for the 2026 model year, its fastest “SS” model yet. Packing up to 615 horsepower and 650 lb-ft of torque, the Chevy Blazer SS can race from 0 to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds when using Wide Open Watts (WOW) mode.
Will the Bolt be next? I wouldn’t get my hopes up. And if GM does bring the sporty Chevy EV to life, it will likely only be sold in China. Like all the fun cars these days.
What do you think of the design? Would you buy one of these in the US? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
While deliveries of the 2027 Bolt are set to begin in early 2026, Chevy is offering some sweet deals on its current EV lineup, including up to $4,000 off in Customer Cash and 0% APR financing for 60 months.
Ready to test drive one? You can use our links below to find Chevy Equinox, Blazer, and Silverado EVs at a dealership near you.
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Environment
Podcast: Electricity is the base currency, Tesla Robotaxi crashes, new Porsche Cayenne EV, and more
In the Electrek Podcast, we discuss the most popular news in the world of sustainable transport and energy. In this week’s episode, we discuss electricity becoming the base currency, Tesla Robotaxi crashes, the new Porsche Cayenne EV, and more.
The show is live every Friday at 4 p.m. ET on Electrek’s YouTube channel.
As a reminder, we’ll have an accompanying post, like this one, on the site with an embedded link to the live stream. Head to the YouTube channel to get your questions and comments in.
After the show ends at around 5 p.m. ET, the video will be archived on YouTube and the audio on all your favorite podcast apps:
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Here are a few of the articles that we will discuss during the podcast:
Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 4:00 p.m. ET (or the video after 5 p.m. ET:
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