Crude oil purchases by Indian Oil Corp. may shift as the new US sanctions on Russia affect supplies from Moscow, pushing the South Asian country’s biggest refiner to seek alternatives.

Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, India became a major buyer of Russian crude oil that was widely sanctioned by the West. That may be about to change.

Middlemen supplying Russian oil are not offering cargoes due to new U.S. sanctions targeting Russian producers, tankers and insurers, according to the finance chief at Indian refiner Bharat Petroleum.

Indian banks has begun blocking payments for Russian oil imports following the latest round of U.S. sanctions against Russia's oil industry, according to a report from Energy Intelligence, an energy information company.

State-owned banks, including the State Bank of India and Punjab National Bank, are more cautious, while private banks have taken a softer stance on the deadline for closing energy deals, in line with the interpretation of the sanctions by refiners,