India’s Russian coal imports in March may be highest in over 2 years

India's Russian coal imports in March could be the highest in more than two years, as Indian buyers continue buying the fuel from a market that is now increasingly isolated by sanctions. Russia might offer more competitive prices to the Indian and Chinese buyers since the European and various customers spurn Russia due to sanctions. According to data from consultancy Kpler, vessels carrying at least 1.06 million tonnes of coking coal and thermal coal will deliver the fuel in Indian ports which will be used for electricity generation next month, which is the highest since January 2020. Russia, which is the sixth-largest supplier of India's coking and thermal coal, can start offering even more competitive prices to Chinese as well as Indian buyers since European and several other customers spurn Russia due to sanctions, the traders said. Additionally, they said that the trade can also be boosted by a trading arrangement of rouble-rupee. Approximately 8,70,000 tonnes of Russian coal is already delivered or expected to be delivered to the Indian shores by March 20, which according to Indian consultancy Coalmint is the highest since April 2020. The number could have been higher if more coal had been loaded at Russian ports from mid-February since it typically takes around a month for the vessels to deliver to India. Indian buyers are now in a backseat in the SWIFT ban as well as sanctions on Russia. They are currently looking out for alternatives from the US and Australia. Image Source Also read: India's coal imports likely to grow in 2022: Fitch Ratings report