Netherlands says 'difficult' to track product origin, remains among top buyers as India continues Russian oil purchase
The Hague/New Delhi: The Netherlands has said it is “difficult” for anyone to track the origins of petroleum products, posing a question mark over the efficacy of European Union (EU) sanctions on Russian crude oil.
The Netherlands is the third-largest buyer of India's petroleum products, and its statement assumes significance given that it is the gateway for petro-product supplies to the EU through the port of Rotterdam, the largest European port. Meanwhile, India is the second-largest buyer of Russian crude exports after China.
It is difficult for any nation or organization to track the origins of oil products since they are mixed in "multiple places," Pieter ten Bruggencate, spokesperson for Netherlands climate and green growth minister Stientje van Veldhoven-van der Meer, said in an emailed response to a Mint query. "Traders need to show no Russian oil is used in the refining process. National custom organizations need to monitor this, but cannot monitor all shipments. Given the EU ban on importing fuels refined from Russian crude oil, it is likely that Indian oil products made from Russian oil will be exported to other parts of the world, while the rest of India's output can still go to the EU. So, it isn't a given that 'a large chunk originates from Russian oil’,” the spokesperson added.
India is the second largest buyer of Russian crude oil after China, with Moscow accounting for nearly half of India's overall oil import basket. India exported $2.78 billion worth of petroleum products to the Netherlands in the April-August period, according to data from India’s commerce and industry ministry. Mint reported in November 2022 that the Netherlands emerged as the top destination for India’s petroleum product exports.
Double standards
Experts said the European countries' petroleum product imports reflect the double standards in the global energy markets.
C. Uday Bhaskar, director at the Society for Policy Studies said, “The fact is that the US itself is now importing diesel from Russia and the threat of penalties has been held out against India for trading with Russia in hydrocarbons. And now, we have the European countries, Western Europe, Netherlands in this case, importing refined products…derived from Russia. It also reveals the interconnected nature now of the global supply chain in energy, particularly after what has happened in Hormuz and West Asia.”
Embassy of The Netherlands in New Delhi in an emailed response said, “As of 21 January 2026, the EU prohibits the import, purchase or transfer into the EU of petroleum products refined in third countries from Russian-origin crude oil. Importers must provide evidence of the crude oil’s country of origin. Some refineries process both Russian and non-Russian crude oil.”
“Under the EU regulations, exports to the EU are not automatically prohibited simply because a refinery processes Russian crude. EU companies importing oil products from third countries must be able to demonstrate that the specific products imported to the EU were produced from non-Russian crude, with the required supporting documentation and verification,” the embassy added.
As of August, Russian oil supplies stood at $33.77 billion, about 45% of the total oil imports of $77.56 billion during the April-August period, showed commerce ministry data.
In response to a direct query from Mint on Russian crude oil being refined by India and supplied to the EU through the Netherlands, Netherland’s foreign trade and development cooperation minister Sjoerd Sjoerdsma said, “This is really a question also for the minister of foreign affairs.”
“These questions have been answered by our Embassy, so we will leave it at that. Thank you for understanding,” said Jesper Dekker, spokesperson, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, at Netherland’s ministry of foreign affairs in an emailed response.
Being pragmatic
Some say EU nations are pragmatic.
“European countries, just like India, Russia or China, are pragmatic. If some refined oil products which are competitively priced can be sourced from India, European countries are likely to import the same. It is all about who needs whom for economic and strategic reasons. The Indian government could mention the above fact gently to the EU and the EU may factor this into their overall strategic-economic relationship with India,” said Jaimini Bhagwati, India’s former ambassador to the EU.
In response to a mailed query from Mint, the RIL spokesperson referred to the company's statement a year ago after EU announced to restrict import of products produced from Russian crude starting 21 January 2026.
The RIL spokesperson had on 26 November 2025 said in a statement: "We have stopped importing Russian crude oil into our SEZ refinery with effect from 20 November. From 1 December, all product exports from the SEZ refinery will be obtained from non-Russian crude oil. This transition has been completed ahead of schedule to ensure full compliance with product-import restrictions coming into force on 21 January 2026. The crude oil import in SEZ is a fully segregated facility catering to the production line in SEZ.”
Queries emailed to the Delegation of the European Union to India, India’s ministries of external affairs and petroleum and natural gas, Indian Oil Corp., Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd, Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Ltd and Nayara Energies remained unanswered.
(Utpal Bhaskar was in the Netherlands as the guest of the Confederation of Indian Industry.)