Venezuela became India’s third-largest crude oil supplier in May, surpassing Saudi Arabia and the US. It trails only Russia and the United Arab Emirates. This change comes as Reliance Industries and other refiners increased purchases of Venezuela’s cheaper, heavier crude grades.

According to a report in The Economic Times, India’s total crude imports rose by 8 per cent month-on-month to 4.9 million barrels per day in May. However, this is still 5 per cent lower than the 5.2 million barrels per day recorded in February before the Iran war affected shipments from West Asia.

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US is ready to sell as much energy as India wants. Speaking in Miami ahead of his first visit to New Delhi, Rubio said, “Well, we want to sell them as much energy as they'll buy. And obviously, you've seen I think we're at historic levels of US production, and US export,” further adding that there are opportunities with Venezuelan oil too.

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Energy cargo tracker Kpler reported that Venezuela supplied 417,000 barrels per day to India in May, up from 283,000 barrels per day in April and zero in the previous nine months. Supplies resumed last month after the US eased export curbs on Venezuela, weeks after capturing its president, Nicolas Maduro, in January.

Nikhil Dubey, lead analyst-refining at Kpler, said Indian buyers have shown strong interest in Venezuelan crude due to its attractive economics and compatibility with complex refining systems. 

US sanctions easing on Iran allowed India to resume crude imports from the country in April after seven years. However, no Iranian cargoes have arrived this month due to the US naval blockade of Iranian ports, the report said. Some Iraqi supplies reached India in May after near closure of the Strait of Hormuz disrupted shipments in April. India received 51,000 barrels per day from Iraq in May, down from 969,000 barrels per day in February.

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Supplies from Saudi Arabia, India’s third-largest supplier before the Iran war, have nearly halved to 340,000 barrels per day in May from 670,000 barrels per day in April. Dubey attributed this mainly to the aggressive pricing of Saudi barrels.

Published on: May 22, 2026 12:49 PM IST