Fuel Made in Indian Refineries Reaches Europe: The EU Ban on Products From Russian Crude, Explained
A September 2026 analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), a Finland-based research group, found that fuel exports to countries that have sanctioned Russia rose 43% in one month. The figure covers refineries in India, Türkiye and Brunei together, and reached about €1 billion.
The European Union (EU) was the biggest buyer at about €667 million. Australia (about €168 million), the United States (about €154 million) and New Zealand (about €19 million) followed.
Reliance Industries' Jamnagar refinery in Gujarat supplied six of the seven cargoes that were unloaded at EU ports that month from the refineries studied. This is notable because the EU has banned, since 21 January 2026, the import of fuel made from Russian crude in other countries.
CREA estimated that about €295 million of these products were made from Russian crude. It also said its numbers do not by themselves prove that any shipment broke the sanctions. Reliance has said its export-focused refinery stopped processing Russian crude in November 2025.
India's imports of Russian crude fell 13% in September from August, the second monthly fall in a row. Nayara Energy's Vadinar refinery became India's largest buyer of Russian crude that month. India spent about €4.1 billion on Russian fossil fuels in September, of which crude oil was about €3.6 billion.
CREA suggested a stricter rule: ban imports from any refinery that processed Russian crude in the previous six months, whatever origin is declared for a cargo. This is a proposal, not an EU rule.
EU Sanctions on Refined Products from Russian Crude
After Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the EU stopped buying Russian crude oil and Russian-made fuels. But Russian crude could still go to a refinery in a third country, be turned into diesel or jet fuel there, and then be sold into Europe. Critics called this the "refining loophole". The EU closed it in its 18th sanctions package, which bans the import of refined products made from Russian crude, even when the refining happens outside Russia.
Key Details
- The 18th sanctions package was adopted on 18 July 2025. The refined-products ban applies from 21 January 2026, after a six-month transition.
- It covers imports into the EU of petroleum products made from Russian-origin crude in any third country.
- Five partner countries are exempt: the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Norway and Switzerland.
- Importers must show the country of origin of the crude used to make the fuel. This makes the system depend on paperwork and declarations.
- The same package placed Nayara Energy, which runs the Vadinar refinery in Gujarat and is partly owned by Russia's Rosneft, under EU sanctions.
- Earlier, from 5 December 2022 (crude) and 5 February 2023 (refined products), the EU had already banned direct sea-borne imports from Russia.
The ban only works if buyers can trace which crude went into each cargo. CREA's finding that Indian, Turkish and Bruneian fuel sales to the EU jumped in September, while some of these refineries still process Russian crude, is exactly the enforcement gap the ban tries to close. CREA's refinery-level proposal would shift the test from "which crude is in this cargo?" to "did this refinery use Russian crude at all?".
G7 Price Cap on Russian Oil: Mechanism and Objectives
The G7 price cap is a rule set by the G7 countries, the EU and Australia. Their companies may ship, insure or finance Russian oil going to other countries only if it is sold at or below a fixed maximum price. The aim is to keep Russian oil flowing to the world, so that global prices do not jump, while cutting the money Russia earns from it. It is different from a ban: India can still buy Russian oil, but Western shipping and insurance can be used only if the price is under the cap.
The price cap controls the price at which Russia sells crude; the refined-products ban controls what Europe buys after that crude is refined elsewhere. Together they form the EU's two main tools against Russian oil income. Cheap Russian crude is what makes refining it in India and selling fuel abroad so profitable.
India's Energy Security and Import Dependence
Energy security means a country can always get the energy it needs, at a price it can afford. India buys close to nine out of every ten barrels of crude oil it uses from abroad, so wars, sanctions and blocked sea routes far away directly affect fuel prices at home. India tries to stay safe by buying from many countries, keeping emergency stocks and bargaining for the cheapest oil.
India's refiners earn money by buying crude cheaply and selling fuel where prices are high, including in Europe. EU rules that look at the origin of crude force Indian refiners to choose between cheaper Russian oil and access to European buyers. This shows how energy security is now tied to trade rules and sanctions, not only to supply.
- Fuel exports to sanctioning countries from refineries in India, Türkiye and Brunei: up 43% month-on-month in September 2026, to about €1 billion (CREA)
- EU share: about €667 million; Australia about €168 million; US about €154 million; New Zealand about €19 million
- Jamnagar supplied 6 of the 7 cargoes unloaded at EU ports in September from the refineries studied
- Products estimated to be made from Russian crude: about €295 million
- India's Russian crude imports: down 13% month-on-month in September; Jamnagar down 27%, Paradip down 21%, Vadinar down 8%
- India's spending on Russian hydrocarbons in September 2026: about €4.1 billion (crude about €3.6 billion)
- EU ban on refined products made from Russian crude in third countries: adopted 18 July 2025 (18th package), applies from 21 January 2026
- Exempt partners: US, UK, Canada, Norway, Switzerland
- Russian oil price cap: US$60 (December 2022) → US$47.60 (September 2025) → US$44.10 (February 2026)