India's Edible Oil Import Surge Congests Ports, Slows Fresh Purchases

A surge in India's edible oil imports has overwhelmed storage capacity at key ports, delaying cargo discharge and raising the prospect that the world's largest vegetable oil buyer could scale back fresh purchases in the coming months, three traders told Platts, part of S&P Global Energy on Sept. 7. As the world's largest buyer of vegetable oils, India's import pace is a key demand signal for global palm oil and soybean oil suppliers.

At Kandla port on India's west coast, at least nine vessels carrying about 300,000 metric tons of edible oils are waiting to discharge, with some cargoes facing delays of up to 10 days because shore tanks are full. Vegetable oils arriving at Indian ports are typically moved into shore tanks before onward distribution, so full storage leaves newly arrived vessels idling at anchorage. Haldia port in eastern India is also experiencing congestion, though to a lesser extent, according to a trader from Saveraa International, an edible oil brokerage.

The bottleneck follows aggressive buying by Indian refiners, which pushed August edible oil imports to between 1.5 million metric tons and 1.9 million mt, according to various market sources.

Mukesh Goyal, director at vegetable oil trader Oyal Makler, said Indian ports recorded 587 vegetable oil arrivals totaling 1.9 million mt in August. The total is the highest in 20 months and 29% higher year over year than the 1.47 million mt imported in August 2025, Goyal said.

Crude soybean oil imports are expected to have overtaken crude palm oil imports in August, at 858,706 mt versus 793,636 mt for CPO, Goyal said Sept. 7.

Traders said refiners booked large volumes of August and September cargoes because prompt shipments were cheaper than deferred deliveries, and in anticipation of stronger demand during the festival season, a period when edible oil consumption traditionally rises. Consumption, however, has been slower than expected, leaving refiners and port operators struggling to find storage space.

Two India-based traders, who spoke to Platts on the condition of anonymity, said the congestion is expected to curb India's appetite for vegetable oils in the near term.

Vegetable oil analyst Tushar Agarwal said refiners are likely to reduce October purchases of palm oil and soybean oil while they work through existing inventories and clear the backlog at ports.

Agarwal said Sept. 8 that soybean oil was trading at a discount, prompting heavy buying, but demand has been poor and offtake from importers is slow. He added that at least four tankers are stuck at ports and importers are anxious that they will default if the shipments stay stuck.

India's port stocks of vegetable oils had reached 1.1 million mt at the end of July, the highest level since October 2023, industry trade body the Solvents Extractors' Association of India said in August while releasing import data for July. The SEA is set to release August import numbers by Sept. 15, offering an official read on the scale of last month's buying surge.

Platts assessed the price of crude palm oil CFR West Coast India at $1,285/metric ton on Sept. 7, up 0.6% day over day. CFR quotations reflect the delivered cost of cargo, including freight, at the named destination, making them a reference point for importers booking cargoes into India.