Growing demand for fuel and other petroleum products amid stagnant domestic crude oil output led to India’s reliance on imported oil inching up further in the first half of the current financial year ending March (FY26). Latest data released by the oil ministry’s Petroleum Planning & Analysis Cell (PPAC) shows that India’s oil import dependency was 88.4 per cent in April-September, up from 87.9 per cent in the corresponding period of the last financial year. For the full FY25, reliance on imported oil was at 88.2 per cent, a full-year record.

Industry watchers believe that the import dependency level for the entire FY26 could be a tad higher than the April-September level, as was the case in the previous financial year. India’s energy needs are consistently growing, leading to higher oil

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