Winning Bizness Desk

Mumbai.Global oil markets have turned volatile after disruption around the Strait of Hormuz, forcing India to rapidly reshape its crude oil buying strategy. Amid supply concerns from West Asia, Venezuela has unexpectedly emerged as India’s third-largest crude oil supplier, overtaking both Saudi Arabia and the United States in May 2026.

According to data from energy analytics firm Kpler, only Russia and the UAE supplied more crude oil to India than Venezuela this month. India’s imports from Venezuela jumped nearly 50% compared to April, driven by cheaper prices and uncertainty in Middle Eastern supplies. The sharp turnaround comes after India had avoided Venezuelan oil for nearly nine months due to sanctions-related concerns.

Supply shift changes India’s oil strategy

Kpler data shows India imported nearly 4.17 lakh barrels per day of crude oil from Venezuela in May so far, compared to 2.83 lakh barrels per day in April. Before that, Indian refiners had not purchased Venezuelan oil for almost nine months.

Two major reasons are behind this sudden jump:

• Supply risks due to the Iran conflict and Hormuz crisis
• Cheaper Venezuelan heavy crude compared to Gulf oil

Industry experts say Indian refiners, especially Reliance Industries, are well-equipped to process Venezuela’s heavy and high-sulphur crude oil. This has made Venezuelan oil commercially attractive during a period of rising geopolitical tensions.

Kpler analyst Nikhil Dubey said Indian refiners have always shown interest in Venezuelan crude because it is economical and suits India’s refining systems, particularly the advanced refining facilities in Gujarat.

Reliance refinery gains from cheaper crude

Most Indian refineries can process Venezuelan crude only in limited quantities, but Reliance’s Jamnagar refinery has the technology needed for large-scale heavy crude processing.

This has allowed Reliance to sharply increase imports at a time when oil prices from Saudi Arabia have become expensive. Analysts believe Indian companies are now prioritising affordability over traditional sourcing patterns.

Key changes in India’s crude imports:

• Total crude imports rose 8% in May
• Saudi supplies dropped nearly by half
• Iraq’s exports to India fell sharply
• Russian crude imports almost doubled

India’s total crude imports touched 49 lakh barrels per day in May, although this remains below February levels.

Middle East crisis disrupts oil supplies

Oil supplies from several Middle Eastern nations have weakened after the Iran conflict and disruption around the Strait of Hormuz. Saudi Arabia’s crude exports to India dropped from 6.7 lakh barrels per day in April to nearly 3.4 lakh barrels per day in May.

Imports from Iraq also collapsed sharply. India received only around 51,000 barrels per day from Iraq this month, compared to nearly 9.69 lakh barrels per day in February.

Iran, which resumed oil supplies to India in April after seven years due to easing US restrictions, has not supplied oil in May so far. Reports suggest naval blockades near Iranian ports disrupted shipments.

Russia strengthens hold in Indian market

As Middle Eastern supplies weakened, India further increased dependence on Russian crude oil. Supplies from Russia rose to nearly 23 lakh barrels per day during the crisis period.

However, discounted Russian oil is no longer as cheap as before. According to international reports, Russia is now selling crude at premium rates due to increased global demand after the Iran conflict.

This means Moscow is earning significantly higher profits from the changing energy situation.

Major geopolitical developments:

• Marco Rubio to visit India from May 23 to 26
• Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodriguez may also visit India
• Talks expected on long-term oil supply arrangements

US pushes Venezuelan oil into global market

The United States is now openly encouraging India to buy more American and Venezuelan crude oil. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington wants to expand energy sales to India and sees major opportunity in Venezuelan crude exports.

Venezuela holds the world’s largest proven oil reserves, estimated at nearly 303 billion barrels, even higher than Saudi Arabia and the US. But sanctions and years of economic mismanagement severely damaged its oil production.

Experts believe the near-simultaneous India visits by Marco Rubio and Delcy Rodriguez show how deeply global conflicts and power struggles are now influencing energy diplomacy. With the Middle East facing instability, countries like Venezuela are rapidly finding new opportunities in the global oil market.