India’s crude import bill surges 46% in Sept as oil prices soar
NEW DELHI: India’s crude import bill surged 46% year-on-year in Sept, while import volumes rose only 7%, as oil prices remained elevated amid concerns over prolonged disruptions to supplies from West Asia.Provisional data compiled by the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) showed that India imported 21.7 million tonnes (MT) of crude in Sept, compared with 20.3 MT a year earlier. The country spent $15.4 billion on crude imports, up from $10.5 billion in Sept 2025.Global oil prices remained elevated through the month, with the Indian crude basket touching a monthly peak of $130.19 per barrel on Sept 15. It averaged $116.09 per barrel in Sept, compared with $69.61 a year earlier and $90.19 in Aug 2026. Brent crude also averaged $116.77 per barrel during the month, up from $90.84 in Aug and $68.02 in Sept 2025.During the first half of the 2026-27 financial year (Apr-Sept), India imported 122.7 MT of crude, marginally higher than the 121.8 MT imported during the corresponding period last year. However, the import bill jumped to $90.6 billion from $61.9 billion.The LNG import bill remained unchanged at $1.2 billion in Sept compared with the same month last year, even as import volumes fell 8.5% to 2,957 million standard cubic metres (MMSCM) from 3,233 MMSCM.The net oil and gas import bill rose 40% year-on-year to $13.4 billion in Sept from $9.6 billion. During the first half of the financial year, the net bill increased 35% to $81.1 billion from $60.2 billion in the corresponding period of 2025-26.
