🔗 Share this article ‘The Situation is Dire’: War on Iran Squeezes India's LPG Availability. People line up to buy fuel canisters for home cooking in Chennai. The repercussions of a military engagement being fought nearly 3,000km away are now impacting India's kitchens. As US-Israeli strikes on Iran impede energy deliveries through the vital shipping lane, availability of kitchen fuel are shrinking across India, compelling restaurants to shorten food lists, close earlier and in some cases close completely. Social media is awash with video clips showing queues outside cooking-gas dealers across Indian cities and towns as worries over fuel supplies spread. Restaurant kitchens appear the hardest struck: the biggest crunch is in commercial eateries. "The situation is dire. Kitchen fuel simply isn't available," says a spokesperson of the National Restaurant Association of India. Most restaurants run either on commercial LPG cylinders or direct gas lines, and the shortages are now being felt across the country. "A lot of restaurants have shut down - some in Delhi, many in the southern states. People are turning to traditional burners and induction stoves to keep their operations going." City-Specific Fallout In Mumbai, accounts say up to a significant portion of hotels and restaurants are already fully or partly shut as cylinder availability dwindle. In the southern cities of Bengaluru and Chennai, some eateries say their cylinder inventory have dwindled with scarce alternatives. "Coffee is the sole item we can prepare and no food items - it is nothing less than pathetic. Operations will be impacted," says a restaurant owner in Bengaluru. A eatery in Chennai which has closed its doors due to a lack of LPG. Restaurant operators are seeking alternatives. "Menus are being curtailed, some are skipping midday meals and operating solely in the evening," an industry representative says, adding that closures are changing as supplies wax and wane. "Three restaurants in Delhi were shut yesterday - two have already reopened. It's a changing landscape." Retailers report a increase in sales of induction stoves, with some saying they are running out of them. Authority's View Yet, the officials insists there is sufficient stock. India has more than 30 crore domestic LPG users and officials say supplies are being reallocated to households as geopolitical strain from the Middle East conflict ripple through energy markets. About 60% of India's LPG is imported, and about nine out of ten of those imports pass through the critical waterway, the strategic bottleneck now significantly disrupted by the war. The oil ministry says that it instructed refineries to increase LPG output for home needs, lifting domestic production by about a quarter. Business-grade fuel is being reserved for essential sectors such as medical and academic centers, while distribution will be "just and open". "Unnecessary hoarding and accumulation has been sparked by misinformation. The regular refill period for domestic LPG remains about 60 hours," says a senior official. Spreading Anxiety Now the concern is moving beyond kitchens. On online networks, a widely shared video from Chennai shows a extended procession of two-wheelers outside a fuel station. "The panic is real," the text reads. India brings in up to most of the petroleum it requires, leaving it significantly susceptible to interruptions in global supplies. According to data from market experts, concerns about India's broader energy security may be premature. India imports almost all of its oil. Around a significant portion of its oil purchases - about 2.5-2.7 million barrels a day - travel through the waterway, largely from Middle Eastern nations. Even if crude flows through the Strait of Hormuz are blocked, the shortfall could be partly offset by higher imports of discounted Russian crude, according to a sector expert. Based on vessel tracking and credible market sources, incremental Russian crude imports could reach around 1-1.2 million barrels a day, lessening India's effective gap from exposure to the Strait of Hormuz to about 1.6 million barrels a day. "Around 25-30 million 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 real vulnerability is LPG, commentators observe. India consumes roughly one million barrels a day, but produces only a minority share domestically, importing the rest - the vast majority through Hormuz. Refineries can adjust processes to produce a bit more LPG, but even a limited rise would only increase domestic supply to about under half of demand, leaving the country significantly leaning on imports. In short: "Oil import vulnerability can be somewhat alleviated through diversification. Fuel availability remains relatively comfortable. Cooking gas supply is the critical issue to watch in the coming weeks." What may be heightening the anxiety on the ground is not just tight supply but patchy deliveries - and the usual problem of stockpiling. An industry representative claims exploitative practices. "Retailers are exploiting the situation - illegally trading canisters and selling them at a inflated price. In one small town, I heard of cylinders being hoarded and sold to the highest bidder." For now, India's energy imports may be cushioned by global trade flows. But in restaurants across the country, the more pressing concern is simple: how to get the next refill.
People line up to buy fuel canisters for home cooking in Chennai. The repercussions of a military engagement being fought nearly 3,000km away are now impacting India's kitchens. As US-Israeli strikes on Iran impede energy deliveries through the vital shipping lane, availability of kitchen fuel are shrinking across India, compelling restaurants to shorten food lists, close earlier and in some cases close completely. Social media is awash with video clips showing queues outside cooking-gas dealers across Indian cities and towns as worries over fuel supplies spread. Restaurant kitchens appear the hardest struck: the biggest crunch is in commercial eateries. "The situation is dire. Kitchen fuel simply isn't available," says a spokesperson of the National Restaurant Association of India. Most restaurants run either on commercial LPG cylinders or direct gas lines, and the shortages are now being felt across the country. "A lot of restaurants have shut down - some in Delhi, many in the southern states. People are turning to traditional burners and induction stoves to keep their operations going." City-Specific Fallout In Mumbai, accounts say up to a significant portion of hotels and restaurants are already fully or partly shut as cylinder availability dwindle. In the southern cities of Bengaluru and Chennai, some eateries say their cylinder inventory have dwindled with scarce alternatives. "Coffee is the sole item we can prepare and no food items - it is nothing less than pathetic. Operations will be impacted," says a restaurant owner in Bengaluru. A eatery in Chennai which has closed its doors due to a lack of LPG. Restaurant operators are seeking alternatives. "Menus are being curtailed, some are skipping midday meals and operating solely in the evening," an industry representative says, adding that closures are changing as supplies wax and wane. "Three restaurants in Delhi were shut yesterday - two have already reopened. It's a changing landscape." Retailers report a increase in sales of induction stoves, with some saying they are running out of them. Authority's View Yet, the officials insists there is sufficient stock. India has more than 30 crore domestic LPG users and officials say supplies are being reallocated to households as geopolitical strain from the Middle East conflict ripple through energy markets. About 60% of India's LPG is imported, and about nine out of ten of those imports pass through the critical waterway, the strategic bottleneck now significantly disrupted by the war. The oil ministry says that it instructed refineries to increase LPG output for home needs, lifting domestic production by about a quarter. Business-grade fuel is being reserved for essential sectors such as medical and academic centers, while distribution will be "just and open". "Unnecessary hoarding and accumulation has been sparked by misinformation. The regular refill period for domestic LPG remains about 60 hours," says a senior official. Spreading Anxiety Now the concern is moving beyond kitchens. On online networks, a widely shared video from Chennai shows a extended procession of two-wheelers outside a fuel station. "The panic is real," the text reads. India brings in up to most of the petroleum it requires, leaving it significantly susceptible to interruptions in global supplies. According to data from market experts, concerns about India's broader energy security may be premature. India imports almost all of its oil. Around a significant portion of its oil purchases - about 2.5-2.7 million barrels a day - travel through the waterway, largely from Middle Eastern nations. Even if crude flows through the Strait of Hormuz are blocked, the shortfall could be partly offset by higher imports of discounted Russian crude, according to a sector expert. Based on vessel tracking and credible market sources, incremental Russian crude imports could reach around 1-1.2 million barrels a day, lessening India's effective gap from exposure to the Strait of Hormuz to about 1.6 million barrels a day. "Around 25-30 million 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 real vulnerability is LPG, commentators observe. India consumes roughly one million barrels a day, but produces only a minority share domestically, importing the rest - the vast majority through Hormuz. Refineries can adjust processes to produce a bit more LPG, but even a limited rise would only increase domestic supply to about under half of demand, leaving the country significantly leaning on imports. In short: "Oil import vulnerability can be somewhat alleviated through diversification. Fuel availability remains relatively comfortable. Cooking gas supply is the critical issue to watch in the coming weeks." What may be heightening the anxiety on the ground is not just tight supply but patchy deliveries - and the usual problem of stockpiling. An industry representative claims exploitative practices. "Retailers are exploiting the situation - illegally trading canisters and selling them at a inflated price. In one small town, I heard of cylinders being hoarded and sold to the highest bidder." For now, India's energy imports may be cushioned by global trade flows. But in restaurants across the country, the more pressing concern is simple: how to get the next refill.