🔗 Share this article ‘A Critical Scenario’: War on Iran Tightens India's LPG Supplies. People line up to buy cooking gas cylinders for domestic use in Chennai. The ripple effects of a conflict being fought nearly 1,864 miles away are now being felt in India's homes. As military actions on Iran hinder energy shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, stocks of cooking gas are dwindling across India, forcing restaurants to cut menus, reduce operating times and in some cases cease operations entirely. Social media is awash with video clips showing queues outside fuel suppliers across Indian cities and towns as worries over fuel supplies escalate. Businesses appear the hardest struck: the sharpest squeeze is in food service establishments. "The state of affairs is alarming. LPG simply cannot be found," says a official of the National Restaurant Association of India. Most food outlets run either on commercial LPG cylinders or direct gas lines, and the shortages are now being felt across the country. "Many restaurants have closed - some in Delhi, many in the southern region. People are turning to traditional burners and electric cookers to keep their operations going." City-Specific Fallout In Mumbai, accounts say up to a significant portion of hotels and restaurants are already operating at reduced capacity as business fuel stocks tighten. In the southern cities of Bangalore and Madras, some restaurants say their gas stocks have shrunk with little backup. "We can only make coffee and nothing else - it is truly dismal. Operations will be impacted," says a business operator in Bengaluru. A food joint in Chennai which has ceased operations due to a lack of LPG. Restaurant operators are rushing to adjust. "Menus are being curtailed, some are cutting lunch service and reducing hours," an industry representative says, adding that closures are fluctuating as supplies come and go. "Several establishments in Delhi were shut yesterday - a couple are back in business. It's a fluid situation." Retailers note a surge in sales of electric cookers, with some saying they are facing stockouts. Authority's View Yet, the government states there is adequate supply. India has more than a vast number of home fuel subscribers and authorities say stocks are being prioritized to households as conflict-related stress from the war in the Gulf affect energy markets. About six out of ten of India's LPG is sourced from abroad, and about 90% of those consignments pass through the key maritime route, the strategic bottleneck now effectively closed by the hostilities. The relevant department says that it ordered refineries to maximise LPG output for domestic use, enhancing domestic production by about a significant margin. Commercial stock is being reserved for essential sectors such as medical and academic centers, while distribution will be "fair and transparent". "A degree of anxious stocking and stockpiling has been sparked by false reports. The regular refill period for household cylinders remains about under three days," says a ministry representative. Spreading Anxiety Now the anxiety is extending beyond kitchens. On social media, a widely shared video from Chennai shows a long, snaking queue of two-wheelers outside a gas outlet. "The panic is real," the text reads. India brings in up to most of the petroleum it consumes, leaving it highly exposed to disruptions in worldwide shipments. According to data from energy specialists, concerns about India's broader fuel supplies may be overstated. India imports the overwhelming majority of its petroleum. Around half of its crude oil imports - about 2.5 to 2.7 million barrels a day - travel through the waterway, largely from Gulf countries. Even if crude flows through the Strait of Hormuz are hindered, the deficit could be partly made up by higher imports of Russian petroleum, according to a refinery and oil markets analyst. Based on shipping data and industry information, incremental Russian crude imports could reach around a significant volume of barrels a day, reducing India's effective shortfall from exposure to the Strait of Hormuz to about 1.6 million barrels a day. "A large quantity of Russian oil barrels are currently in transit at sea in the Indian Ocean and, with only two major Asian economies as major buyers, those barrels remain a ready fallback," an analyst noted. Cooking Gas: The Critical Weakness The key weakness is LPG, experts note. India consumes roughly one million barrels a day, but produces only 40-45% domestically, importing the rest - most of it through the chokepoint. Refineries can modify output to extract a bit more LPG, but even a limited rise would only lift domestic supply to about 47-50% of demand, leaving the country significantly leaning on imports. In short: "Crude supply risk can be partially mitigated through diversification. Fuel availability remains relatively comfortable. Kitchen fuel stocks is the real variable to monitor in the coming weeks." What may be intensifying the panic on the ground is not just limited availability but uneven distribution - and the familiar spectre of stockpiling. An industry representative claims exploitative practices. "Retailers are exploiting the situation - black-marketing cylinders and selling them at a inflated price. In one small town, I heard of cylinders being hoarded and sold at a premium." For now, India's petroleum stocks may be buffered by international market dynamics. But in homes across the country, the more pressing concern is simple: how to get the next cylinder.
People line up to buy cooking gas cylinders for domestic use in Chennai. The ripple effects of a conflict being fought nearly 1,864 miles away are now being felt in India's homes. As military actions on Iran hinder energy shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, stocks of cooking gas are dwindling across India, forcing restaurants to cut menus, reduce operating times and in some cases cease operations entirely. Social media is awash with video clips showing queues outside fuel suppliers across Indian cities and towns as worries over fuel supplies escalate. Businesses appear the hardest struck: the sharpest squeeze is in food service establishments. "The state of affairs is alarming. LPG simply cannot be found," says a official of the National Restaurant Association of India. Most food outlets run either on commercial LPG cylinders or direct gas lines, and the shortages are now being felt across the country. "Many restaurants have closed - some in Delhi, many in the southern region. People are turning to traditional burners and electric cookers to keep their operations going." City-Specific Fallout In Mumbai, accounts say up to a significant portion of hotels and restaurants are already operating at reduced capacity as business fuel stocks tighten. In the southern cities of Bangalore and Madras, some restaurants say their gas stocks have shrunk with little backup. "We can only make coffee and nothing else - it is truly dismal. Operations will be impacted," says a business operator in Bengaluru. A food joint in Chennai which has ceased operations due to a lack of LPG. Restaurant operators are rushing to adjust. "Menus are being curtailed, some are cutting lunch service and reducing hours," an industry representative says, adding that closures are fluctuating as supplies come and go. "Several establishments in Delhi were shut yesterday - a couple are back in business. It's a fluid situation." Retailers note a surge in sales of electric cookers, with some saying they are facing stockouts. Authority's View Yet, the government states there is adequate supply. India has more than a vast number of home fuel subscribers and authorities say stocks are being prioritized to households as conflict-related stress from the war in the Gulf affect energy markets. About six out of ten of India's LPG is sourced from abroad, and about 90% of those consignments pass through the key maritime route, the strategic bottleneck now effectively closed by the hostilities. The relevant department says that it ordered refineries to maximise LPG output for domestic use, enhancing domestic production by about a significant margin. Commercial stock is being reserved for essential sectors such as medical and academic centers, while distribution will be "fair and transparent". "A degree of anxious stocking and stockpiling has been sparked by false reports. The regular refill period for household cylinders remains about under three days," says a ministry representative. Spreading Anxiety Now the anxiety is extending beyond kitchens. On social media, a widely shared video from Chennai shows a long, snaking queue of two-wheelers outside a gas outlet. "The panic is real," the text reads. India brings in up to most of the petroleum it consumes, leaving it highly exposed to disruptions in worldwide shipments. According to data from energy specialists, concerns about India's broader fuel supplies may be overstated. India imports the overwhelming majority of its petroleum. Around half of its crude oil imports - about 2.5 to 2.7 million barrels a day - travel through the waterway, largely from Gulf countries. Even if crude flows through the Strait of Hormuz are hindered, the deficit could be partly made up by higher imports of Russian petroleum, according to a refinery and oil markets analyst. Based on shipping data and industry information, incremental Russian crude imports could reach around a significant volume of barrels a day, reducing India's effective shortfall from exposure to the Strait of Hormuz to about 1.6 million barrels a day. "A large quantity of Russian oil barrels are currently in transit at sea in the Indian Ocean and, with only two major Asian economies as major buyers, those barrels remain a ready fallback," an analyst noted. Cooking Gas: The Critical Weakness The key weakness is LPG, experts note. India consumes roughly one million barrels a day, but produces only 40-45% domestically, importing the rest - most of it through the chokepoint. Refineries can modify output to extract a bit more LPG, but even a limited rise would only lift domestic supply to about 47-50% of demand, leaving the country significantly leaning on imports. In short: "Crude supply risk can be partially mitigated through diversification. Fuel availability remains relatively comfortable. Kitchen fuel stocks is the real variable to monitor in the coming weeks." What may be intensifying the panic on the ground is not just limited availability but uneven distribution - and the familiar spectre of stockpiling. An industry representative claims exploitative practices. "Retailers are exploiting the situation - black-marketing cylinders and selling them at a inflated price. In one small town, I heard of cylinders being hoarded and sold at a premium." For now, India's petroleum stocks may be buffered by international market dynamics. But in homes across the country, the more pressing concern is simple: how to get the next cylinder.