The wide-ranging sanctions imposed by the U.S. on the Russian oil sector have started to dent near-term oil flows to India with state-owned Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (BPCL) saying not enough cargoes are available for March.

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.

India’s state refiners are rushing to speed up payments for Russian crude, hoping to complete their trades before a dramatic expansion of Washington’s curbs on Moscow’s oil industry effectively comes into force next month,

Indian refiners have stopped dealing with U.S.-sanctioned oil tankers and entities but the country does not expect disruption to Russian crude supplies during a two-month wind-down period, a government source said on Monday.

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.

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.

Oil refiners in India are reaching for all available options in the rush to make up for Russian flows hit by Washington’s latest round of sanctions, turning to the spot market while simultaneously seeking more long-term supplies from Middle Eastern producers.