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Informist, Saturday, Apr. 18, 2026

 

MUMBAI – India's crude oil import bill fell more than 11% to $121.8 billion in 2025-26 (Apr-Mar), though import volumes rose slightly, according to a report by the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell. In March, the import bill fell nearly 5% on year to $11.7 billion, the report showed.

 

India imported 245.3 million tonnes of crude oil in FY26, up nearly 1% from a year ago. In March, India imported 18.9 million tonnes of crude oil, down from 22.8 million tonnes a year ago, according to the report. The average price of the Indian crude basket was $113.49 per barrel in March, compared with $69.01 in the previous month and $72.47 a year ago, the report showed. The war in West Asia, which began on Feb. 28 and led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, one of the key waterways for energy exports, impacted the crude oil market heavily, sending crude oil prices over the $100 per barrel mark in March.

 

The country's dependency on crude oil imports rose to 88.7% in FY26 from 88.3% in the previous year, the report showed. Domestic crude oil production in FY26 was down at 28 million tonnes from 28.7 million tonnes a year ago, while consumption of petroleum products rose to 243.2 million tonnes from 239.2 million tonnes last year.

 

India's gross petroleum imports, including crude oil and petroleum products, fell 0.3% to 293.2 million tonnes in FY26. The value of gross petroleum imports was down at $142.7 billion from $160.8 billion a year ago, the report showed. India's exports of petroleum products fell to 61.5 million tonnes in FY26 from 65.1 million tonnes in the previous year. The value of exports declined to $38.8 billion from $44.4 billion.  End

 

US$1 = INR 92.93

 

Reported by Shreya Shetty

Edited by Ashish Shirke

 

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