No LPG shortage, consumer rush is panic driven: Govt official

NEW DELHI, (IANS): There is no LPG shortage in the country and "no dry-out has been reported", Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry's Joint Secretary, Marketing and Oil Refining, Sujata Sharma, said on Thursday.

In a briefing on the current LPG situation in the country, she said that LPG bookings have increased as consumers are rushing to secure supplies amid concerns over potential disruptions, describing the rush as "panic-driven rather than the result of any actual shortage".

"The Strait of Hormuz is closed for commercial shipping. After the government’s intervention, 70 per cent of imports are coming through routes other than Hormuz. When it comes to crude, our situation is quite comfortable," Sharma said.

Regarding commercial LPG, we have prioritised hospitals and education centres, she added.

Meanwhile, the Environment Ministry has advised the use of biomass, kerosene and coal as alternative fuels for about a month, as authorities prepare contingency measures amid concerns over potential disruptions to energy supplies.

The advisory encourages temporary fuel substitution to ease pressure on LPG demand and ensure energy availability during the period.

India consumes around 55 lakh barrels of crude oil every day, and the country has already secured supplies beyond the volumes that would normally arrive through the Strait of Hormuz during this period.

According to Sharma, about 70 per cent of India’s crude oil imports are currently arriving through alternative routes.

Non-Hormuz sourcing has risen to approximately 70 per cent of crude imports, up from 55 per cent before the conflict began.

India sources crude from 40 countries, against 27 in 2006-07; this structural diversification, built through sustained policy over successive years, has given us options that other nations now find themselves without.

Refineries are operating at high-capacity utilisation; in several cases, they are exceeding 100 per cent, according to the government.