Russia is now the biggest supplier of crude oil to India overtaking Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
Russia's war with Ukraine, which invited US-led sanctions, germinated the idea of rupee trade as India boosted its purchases of cheap oil from Moscow to contain a rising import bill amid high commodity prices.
Payment in rubles is also a challenge because there is no fixed exchange rate for the currency, a Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd. executive, who didn't want to be named, said, adding refiners would rather pay in the United Arab Emirates dirham which is pegged to the dollar.
Spokespersons for the India's external affairs and trade ministries didn't immediately comment on the matter.
As a result, India's imports from Russia climbed more than 400% in eight months to November from a year earlier, while exports fell 14%, showing little success in the government's efforts to improve outbound shipments.
Source: NDTV