Reliance says not received any Russian oil in three weeks, none expected in Jan
New Delhi (PTI): Reliance Industries Ltd, the operator of the world's largest single site oil refining complex and till recently India's biggest buyer of Russian oil, on Tuesday said it has not received any Russian barrels in almost three weeks and none are expected in January.
On November 20, 2025, Reliance had said it has halted the use of Russian crude at its export-only refinery in Jamnagar, Gujarat, as the company moves to comply with European Union sanctions.
Prior to that, Reliance was India's largest buyer of Russian oil, which it processes and turns into fuel, such as petrol and diesel, at its giant oil refining complex at Jamnagar.
The complex is made up of two refineries -- one SEZ unit from which fuels are exported to the European Union, the US, and other markets, and an older unit that primarily caters to the domestic market.
The European Union -- a big market for Reliance -- has imposed wide-ranging sanctions targeting Russia's energy revenues, including measures that restrict the import and sale of fuels produced from Russian crude oil.
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To comply with these, Reliance had stopped processing Russian crude oil at its only-for-exports (SEZ) refinery.
On Tuesday, it called a Bloomberg report claiming "three vessels laden with Russian oil are heated for Reliance's Jamnagar refinery as "blatantly untrue".
"Reliance Industries' Jamangar refinery has not received any cargo of Russian oil at its refinery in the past three weeks approx. and is not expecting any Russian crude oil deliveries in January," the company said in a statement.
The Bloomberg report had cited data analytics firm Kpler to say at least three tankers, laden with nearly 2.2 million barrels of urals (a grade of Russian crude), were headed towards the Sikka port -- through which Jamnagar refining complex sources a bulk of its crude imports.
However, Sikka is also the port that is used by non-Reliance companies.
Industry sources said the three cargoes cited in the report were probably for Bina refinery of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and not Reliance.
"We have stopped importing Russian crude oil into our SEZ refinery with effect from November 20," a Reliance spokesperson had said in a statement on November 20, 2025.
"From December 1, all product exports from the SEZ refinery will be obtained from non-Russian crude oil."
Reliance purchased about half of the 1.7-1.8 million barrels per day of discounted Russian crude shipped to India prior to that.
India became the second-largest buyer of discounted Russian seaborne crude after the Ukraine war began in 2022, drawing criticism from western nations that have imposed sanctions on Russia's energy sector, arguing that oil revenues help finance Moscow's war effort.
US President Donald Trump on Sunday warned that the United States could raise tariffs on India if New Delhi fails to curb purchases of Russian oil.
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Experience comes when you play bigger teams in bilateral series: Rashid Khan
Chennai (PTI): Afghanistan skipper Rashid Khan called for more bilateral series against stronger cricketing nations after his team signed off from the T20 World Cup on a high, defeating Canada in their final group match here on Thursday.
Afghanistan played some exhilarating cricket, going down to South Africa in a gripping second Super Over after the scores were tied, a humdinger that provided one of the early thrills of the World Cup.
However, the spin-bowling stalwart said Afghanistan could make significant strides if they get regular opportunities to compete against stronger cricketing nations.
"Couple of areas to improve, with the batting, the middle order got a bit stuck against the big teams, and then with the bowling the death overs. That comes when you play the bigger teams in bilateral series," said Rashid after his team defeat Canada by 82 runs, with him returning excellent figures of 2 for 19.
The stalwart said the side had arrived well prepared for the tournament and produced some breathtaking cricket, but admitted the narrow defeat to South Africa proved costly and remained a painful setback.
"We were well-prepared (for the tournament), we played some unbelievable cricket. The game against South Africa, that really hurt everyone. We had to win one of those (first two) games and see how the tournament unfolded. We'll take some positive things from this World Cup and look forward," he said.
With head coach Jonathan Trott set to part ways with the team, Rashid described the departure as an "emotional" moment for the side.
"I think we had some wonderful times with him. Where we are now, he played a main role. It's emotional to see him leave us, but that's how life is. We wish him all the best and somewhere down the line we see him again."
Ibrahim Zadran, who was named Player of the Match for his unbeaten 95 off 56 balls, said it was satisfying to finally register a substantial score after two below-par outings.
"I enjoyed it, didn't play better cricket in first two innings, which I expect. Wanted to back my skills, really enjoyed it. Pressure was there, it's there all the time. I want to put myself in pressure situations and enjoy it," said Zadran.
"Wanted to play positive cricket, rotate strike and punish bad ball, create partnerships and this is what I have done."
