New Delhi: A temporary disruption at Russia’s Sheskharis oil terminal on the Black Sea following a surge in Ukrainian drone attacks in the area has once again underlined India’s growing dependence on Russian crude, with analysts saying developments around Russia’s crude export infrastructure now pose a bigger risk to Indian refiners than disruptions in the Red Sea.
The Sheskharis terminal in Novorossiysk, Russia’s largest crude loading facility on the Black Sea, halted operations last week after a surge in Ukrainian drone attacks on oil infrastructure in the region, Abu Dhabi-based commodity analyst Natalia Katona told ThePrint.This terminal is particularly important for India, given that, of the 1.1 million barrels per day (mbpd) loaded here in June, around 840,000 barrels per day (bpd) of Russian Urals and Siberian Light crude was destined for Indian refiners. The wider Novorossiysk export complex accounted for roughly 28 percent of all Russian crude imported by India during the same month, cited Katona. The June volumes were a record and coincided with a sharp rise in Russian crude shipments to India in recent months. Before the Strait of Hormuz crisis, Sheskharis accounted for export of an average of around 465,000 bpd in 2025.
