Nayara Energy, the privately held Indian oil refiner backed by Russia’s Rosneft, has approached India’s Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways for assistance in securing vessels to transport refined fuels, a senior government official has confirmed.
The request follows last month’s European Union sanctions against the company, which have disrupted its logistics and access to key services.
Nayara, formerly known as Essar Oil, operates one of India’s largest single-site refineries at Vadinar, Gujarat, with a capacity of 20 million tonnes per year. The sanctions have placed considerable strain on its operations, particularly with respect to the inland distribution of refined products to its domestic retail network.
Since the EU measures were imposed, the refiner has reportedly encountered difficulties in chartering vessels, as several shipping companies have either withdrawn from existing contracts or refused new engagements. Affected shippers are understood to be concerned about compliance risks and the potential unavailability of insurance coverage for transporting fuels on Nayara’s behalf.
A Reuters source familiar with the discussions stated that Nayara has reduced crude processing at its Vadinar plant, reflecting the logistical bottlenecks in fuel distribution. The company’s ability to supply fuel to its network of over 6,500 fuel stations across India has been compromised, prompting the appeal to the Indian government.
The issue was raised during a recent meeting between Nayara executives and officials from various ministries, including shipping, oil, and external affairs. According to the source, a joint inter-ministerial consultation is expected to be held shortly to explore the matter further.
Among the options under consideration is the deployment of India-flagged vessels owned by domestic shipping companies. However, there are concerns over insurance availability, with Indian shipowners reportedly reluctant to commit vessels without assurances that appropriate cover can be maintained for voyages involving Nayara cargoes. The government is said to be reviewing regulatory mechanisms to facilitate insurance support, though no formal decisions have yet been taken.
The imposition of EU sanctions in July marked a significant escalation in scrutiny of entities with Russian ownership operating outside the bloc. Nayara, in which Rosneft holds a 49.13% stake, is among the few Indian energy companies directly impacted by Western measures linked to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The remaining shareholding is controlled by Kesani Enterprises, a consortium comprising Trafigura and UCP Investment Group.
In addition to shipping-related disruption, Nayara has also faced temporary suspension of digital services. According to reports, Microsoft briefly halted the provision of certain business-critical software and cloud services to the company in the immediate aftermath of the EU sanctions. Services were reportedly restored following clarification of the regulatory situation, but the episode has underscored the vulnerability of the company’s operations to external compliance decisions.
Nayara Energy has not commented publicly on the developments. A spokesperson for the Ministry of Shipping also declined to provide details, stating only that the government was “aware of the request and examining possible solutions in the national interest.”
India has so far not implemented any sanctions of its own against Russian-backed entities operating in the country. The Indian government has consistently stated that its energy and commercial relations are guided by national priorities, including energy security and supply chain resilience. Nevertheless, the impact of extraterritorial measures by the EU and other Western jurisdictions is increasingly being felt by Indian firms engaged in trade or partnership with Russian stakeholders.
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