India has rejected Russia's offer to sell liquefied natural gas (LNG) for shipments subject to US sanctions even though the country is lacking supplies due to the conflict in the Middle East, 2 sources familiar with the matter revealed.
A source said that India's caution has prevented a LNG shipment from the Russian Portovaya plant in the Baltic Sea - a facility on the US sanctions list - from being unloaded, even though in mid-April this shipment was declared as India's destination. This LNG ship is still being monitored despite documents showing that the shipment is not of Russian origin.
Marine transport data in mid-April showed that the LNG ship Kunpeng, with a capacity of 138,200m3, was on its way to the LNG import port of Dahej in western India. The ship is currently near Singapore waters and is not signaling its destination.
Sources said that India - Russia's largest crude oil buyer by sea - announced its decision not to buy sanctioned LNG to Russian Deputy Energy Minister Pavel Sorokin during his visit on April 30. At that time, Mr. Sorokin met with Indian officials, including Indian Oil and Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri. This is the 2nd meeting between the parties in just 2 months, and Mr. Sorokin may return to India in June to continue negotiations.
Meanwhile, India's purchase of Russian crude oil is still ongoing without interruption, thanks to a temporary exemption mechanism for US sanctions to help countries cope with the energy crisis arising from the US-Israel conflict with Iran that broke out on February 28.
LNG 2 Arctic is another Russian LNG export factory subject to US sanctions. Washington has tightened sanctions against Russian LNG plants since the beginning of 2025 related to the Ukraine conflict.
Another source said that crude oil can hide its origin through transshipment activities between ships at sea, but LNG trips are much harder to hide because they can be tracked by satellites.
This source pointed out that India is still open to the possibility of buying licensed Russian LNG shipments, but most of this supply has been committed to Europe. Meanwhile, China is still a major customer for both sanctioned and unsanctioned Russian LNG.
In addition to LNG, Russia is also seeking long-term agreements to supply India with fertilizers such as potassium, phosphorus and urea.
Before the conflict with Iran disrupted transportation through the Strait of Hormuz, about half of India's gas demand was met through imports, of which about 60% passed through Hormuz. More than half of the country's crude oil supply was also transported along the same route.
Last weekend, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called on people to save fuel and foreign currency by working remotely, limiting travel abroad and reducing imports of gold and cooking oil.
