The 105,274-dwt Noble Walker, a sanctioned vessel carrying Russian crude, has diverted to Vadinar port after Adani Group barred blacklisted ships from entering Mundra, reports New Delhi's Times of India.

The ship, transporting around one million barrels of Russian oil for HPCL Mittal Energy Ltd, was initially headed to Mundra until Friday, according to LSEG and Kpler data.

The Noble Walker has been blacklisted by the European Union and Britain for violating sanctions related to Russian oil transport.

Adani last week issued a directive banning vessels sanctioned by the EU, Britain and the United States from its 14 ports, including Mundra in western India.

Indian refiners such as HMEL and Indian Oil Corp regularly use Mundra for importing Russian oil. HMEL did not respond to Reuters request for comment.

India has emerged as the largest buyer of seaborne Russian oil following Western sanctions imposed after Moscow's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Authorities in India have increased scrutiny of vessels and transactions involving Russian supplies.

Russian oil is often transported via a shadow fleet, following sanctions targeting ships, traders and firms to reduce Moscow's oil revenue.

Another sanctioned vessel, Spartan, carrying 1 million barrels of Russian crude, was anchored near Mundra on Monday and was scheduled to discharge its cargo, Kpler data showed.