For Russian oil, tougher sanctions imposed a month ago by the outgoing Biden administration have driven up costs for refiners in China and India, with March ESPO Blend crude traded at $2 to $3 above ICE Brent on a DES basis to China, the highest premiums in more than two years, three trade sources said.

U.S. sanctions on Russia should not affect Moscow's oil trade with India, Pavel Sorokin, Russia's first deputy energy minister, said on Tuesday, while adding it was too early to assess the impact of the latest restrictions.

The oil tanker Cordelia Moon, carrying crude from a Russian producer, has come under US sanctions and has been drifting off India's west coast for two days, according to Bloomberg. The Cordelia Moon was scheduled to unload at Vadinar Port on February 9,

India's Bharat Petroleum Corp will sign a contract with Brazil's Petrobras for optional crude imports of 6 million barrels in 2025-26, Chairman G Krishnakumar said on Wednesday at the India Energy Week conference.

Oil PSU Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) on Wednesday announced the signing of a term contract with Brazil’s national oil company, Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras), for the supply of 6 million barrels of Brazilian crude oil in FY26.

The contract would initially be valid for one year and can be extended by another year, BPCL said. The move is in line with the government's focus on diversifying India's crude oil sources and strengthen energy cooperation with Brazil.