India is snapping up discounted Russian natural gas as even Putin ally China shuns supplies

• Major companies in India have purchased liquefied natural gas cargoes from Russia for bargain prices, sources told Bloomberg.
• These discounted purchases are set to continue, so long as the prices remain lower than competing suppliers, according to the report.

Indian companies have accrued additional volumes of discounted liquefied natural gas from Russia while other customers avoid doing business with Moscow over its war on Ukraine.

Gujarat State Petroleum and GAIL India purchased several liquefied natural gas cargoes from Russia at bargain rates, sources told Bloomberg Monday. And these purchases could continue, the people said, as long as the prices remain lower than other suppliers.

Only a select number of liquefied natural gas importers outside of India have been taking Russia-origin cargoes amid the war. India's utility giants have been buying up additional shipments of the commodity because of global supply strains as well as ongoing blackouts and extreme heat, Bloomberg reported.

Many nations have turned away from business with Moscow since its invasion of Ukraine began at the end of February, despite the absence of direct sanctions on liquefied natural gas.

Japan and South Korea have stopped spot purchases, and even Chinese energy giant PetroChina said Friday it wasn't seeking discounted cargoes on the spot market.

While new orders and spot shipments have dwindled, most Russian deliveries are on long-term contracts, and those customers continue to accept them.

Meanwhile, India's oil refiners shipped out near-record volumes of gasoline and diesel, enjoying high margins in overseas trade. In March, refiners in India exported 3.37 million tons of diesel, the highest mark since April 2020, and gasoline exports reached 1.6 million tons, a five-year high, data compiled by Bloomberg shows.

Separately, the European Union said Monday it would abandon plans to sanction EU-owned vessels that ship Russian oil to anywhere in the world. However, the bloc still intends to keep restrictions on insurers, according to the report.