Top 20 Oil Importing Countries in 2023

Published on January 28, 2023 at 12:47 pm by Insider Monkey Team in Lists, News

In this article, we take a look at the top 20 oil importing countries in 2023. If you want to see more top oil importing countries in 2023, go directly to Top 5 Oil Importing Countries in 2023.

In this article, oil is defined as crude oil.

Because not every country has enough crude oil and crude oil is essential for a modern economy, many countries import crude oil. Given refineries that process crude oil are sometimes located in a different country than where the crude oil is produced, countries also have to import oil for refineries.

The Largest Importers of Crude Oil

In terms of the largest importers of crude oil, many of the top importers of crude oil also have large economies.

In terms of the largest crude oil importers for example, the United States, China, and India are among the top three in 2017. With regard to the world’s largest countries by GDP, PPP, all three countries are in the top three. In terms of the world’s largest countries by nominal GDP, all three countries are in the top five in 2021.

With regard to the United States, the country has imported less crude oil over time.

The EIA writes on U.S imports, “After generally increasing every year from 1954 through 2005, U.S. gross and net total petroleum imports peaked in 2005. Since 2005, increases in domestic petroleum production and increases in petroleum exports have helped to reduce annual total petroleum net imports.”

The EIA adds, “The United States remained a net crude oil importer in 2021, importing about 6.11 million b/d of crude oil and exporting about 2.96 million b/d. However, some of the crude oil that the U.S. imports is refined by U.S. refineries into petroleum products—such as gasoline, heating oil, diesel fuel, and jet fuel—that the U.S. exports. Also, some of imported petroleum may be stored and subsequently exported.”

If U.S. crude oil production continues to increase, the country could be a net exporter.

While the United States has imported less crude oil over time, countries like China and India have generally imported more oil in terms of the last decade up until recently.

Up until to 2021, China’s crude oil imports rose for two decades given the nation’s growing economy. In 2021 and 2022, the country’s crude oil imports were down with 2022 imports 0.9% lower than in 2021 with the pandemic lockdowns accounting for some of the decline.

In the near term, many countries need crude oil imports to power their economies although by how much will depend on economic conditions and on the price of crude oil. If crude oil prices are high, many countries might not import as much crude oil as demand will decrease. If crude oil prices are low, countries may import more crude oil as demand could rise.

The price of crude oil will depend on economic conditions and on whether economic data meets estimates. The price of crude oil also depends on supply, demand, and many other factors. In the long term, crude oil demand will depend on how quickly electric vehicles adoption increases and how much crude oil emerging countries need to continue to develop their economies.

Pixabay/Public Domain

Methodology

For our list of Top 20 Oil Importing Countries in 2023, we used data from the CIA.gov’s The World Factbook (2021 Archive) crude oil imports list.

The CIA.gov’s crude oil import data does not account for crude oil exports. As a result, it is not net oil imports.

Although much of the data is estimates from 2017, the CIA.gov is the only official data source that lists countries. Given oil consumption doesn’t change very much from year to year unless there is a big economic change, the relative ordering of the countries is generally the same. Changes such as increases in domestic oil production or decreases in oil demand will change the absolute data however.

For those of you interested, also check out Top 20 Oil Exporting Countries in 2023.

Top 20 Oil Importing Countries in 2023

This list is crude oil imports and not net crude oil imports.

20. Greece

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2017: 484,300

Greece is an importer of oil given its sizable economy of nearly $215 billion in 2021 and its domestic production of crude not meeting demand. According to the CIA, the country imported 484,300 barrels of crude oil per day in 2017 which isn’t all that different from the imports of 460,837 barrels per day in December 2021 according to CEIC Data. Given its imports, Greece ranks #20 on our list of Top 20 Oil Importing Countries in 2023.

19. Poland

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2017: 493,100

Poland is a member of the EU with a GDP of $679.4 billion in 2021. Given its growing economy and its oil production not meeting demand, Poland imported 493,100 barrels per day of crude oil in 2017.

18. Indonesia

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2015: 498,500

Indonesia is a country with a big economy with a nominal 2021 GDP of $1.186 trillion and a 2021 GDP, PPP of $3.57 trillion. Indonesia’s economy is also growing at a fairly rapid rate given the country’s central bank projected in December that Indonesia will grow between 4.5% and 5.3% for 2023 and 4.7% to 5.5% in 2024.

CEIC Data shows that the country’s oil imports amounted to 206,333 barrels per day in December 2021.

17. Turkey

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2017: 521,500

According to the the International Trade Administration in 2021, Turkey is a net importer of oil & gas that spends more than $40 billion each year importing energy resources such as oil, natural gas, and coal. Given local oil production meets 7% of demand, Turkey is a crude oil importer. In 2017, the country imported 521,500 barrels of crude oil per day.

16. Belgium

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2017: 687,600

Belgium is an EU country with a 2021 GDP of $594.1 billion that has been a historical importer of crude oil. In 2017, Belgium imported 687,600 barrels of crude oil a day ranking #16 on our list of Top 20 Oil Importing Countries in 2023. In December 2021, Belgium imported 579,444 barrels per day according to CEIC Data.

15. Singapore

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2015: 783,300

Singapore is a nation state that’s one of the leading financial capitals in Asia. Given it has a considerable economy with a 2021 GDP of $397 billion and the city state doesn’t have domestic hydrocarbon production, Singapore imports its oil. According to the EIA, more than two thirds of Singapore’s crude oil imports come from the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait.

14. Canada

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2017: 806,700

Canada is a major oil producer that still imports oils given its domestic refineries. According to the Canadian government data, the country produced 3.8 million barrels per day in 2014, exported 2.9 million barrels per day, sent 1.2 million barrels per day to domestic refineries and imported 0.7 million barrels per day to domestic refineries. According to the CIA, Canada imported 806,700 barrels per day of crude oil in 2017.

13. Taiwan

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2015: 846,400

Taiwan is a crude oil importer given it doesn’t produce much crude oil. Whereas it produced 28,000 barrels per day of petroleum and other liquids in 2015, Taiwan consumed nearly 1.1 million barrels per day of petroleum and other liquids in 2015. According to the CIA, Taiwan imported 846,400 barrels of crude oil per day in 2015.

12. Thailand

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2015: 875,400

Thailand has a 2021 GDP of $505.9 billion, and GDP,PPP of $1.34 trillion. According to CEIC Data, the country imported 862,833 barrels per day in December 2021.

11. United Kingdom

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2017: 907,100

The United Kingdom is the third largest energy consumer in Europe and the country has been a net energy importer since 2004. According to government data, The United Kingdom imported £30.0 billion of oil in 2021 with £17.6 billion being crude oil and £12.4 billion being refined oil. In the same year, The United Kingdom also exported £28.3 billion of oil with £17.9 billion being crude oil and £10.4 billion being refined oil.

10. Netherlands

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2017: 1,094,000

The Netherlands is an EU member with a GDP of $1.013 trillion in 2021, making it one of the larger economies in Europe. Given its domestic production doesn’t meet demand, the Netherlands is also a considerable importer of crude oil. According to the CIA, the country imported 1,094,000 barrels of crude oil per day in 2017. According to CEIC Data, the country imported 1,059,927 barrels per day in December 2021.

9. France

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2017: 1,147,000

Given it doesn’t produce much crude oil, France imports much of its oil. According to CEIC Data, France produced 14,490 barrels per day in December 2019. In December 2021, the country imported 683,209 barrels per day. In 2017, France imported 1,147,000 barrels per day of crude oil according to the CIA.

8. Spain

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2017: 1,325,000

Spain is another EU country that imports a lot of oil. In 2017, Spain imported 1,325,000 barrels of crude oil per day, ranking #8 on our list of Top 20 Oil Importing Countries in 2023. In terms of its imports, most of Spain’s crude oil came from Mexico, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, and Angola according to the EIA.

7. Italy

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2017: 1,341,000

Italy has a big economy with a 2021 GDP of $2.108 trillion. Recently, the Bank of Italy also increased its GDP growth projection for 2023 to 0.6% from 0.4%. In terms of oil imports, Italy is a leading oil importer given crude oil imports of 1,341,000 barrels per day in 2017. As of December 2021, Italy remains a substantial importer given the country’s imports of 1,145,298 barrels per day according to CEIC Data.

6. Germany

Crude Oil Imports (barrels/day) as of 2017: 1,836,000

Germany has one of the largest economies in the world with a GDP of $4.26 trillion, which ranks fourth in the world in terms of nominal GDP, behind only the United States, China, and Japan. In terms of crude imports, Germany ranks 6th in the world with imports of 1,836,000 barrels per day in 2017.

Click to continue reading and see Top 5 Oil Importing Countries in 2023.