Members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries , mainly from the Middle East and Africa, saw their share of India's oil market slide to 59% in the fiscal year to March 2023, from about 72% in 2021/22, a Reuters analysis of the data that dates back to 2001/02 showed.
OPEC's share shrank as India, which in the past rarely bought Russian oil due to high freight costs, is now the top oil client for Russian seaborne oil, rejected by Western nations following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.India shipped in about 1.6 million barrels per day of Russian oil in 2022/23, the data showed, about 23% of its overall 4.65 million bpd imports.
"Russian crude is already cheaper than the similar Middle Eastern grades and it seems OPEC is harming itself by a reduction in output," said Refinitiv analyst Ehsan Ul Haq.Higher intake of Russian oil boosted the share of Commonwealth of Independent States countries to a record 26.3%, and reduced that of Middle Eastern and African nations to a 22-year low of 55% and 7.6%, respectively.In 2021/22, Middle East's share was 64% while Africa's was 13.4%, the data showed.