🔗 Share this article ‘An Alarming State of Affairs’: Hostilities on Iran Squeezes India's Cooking-Gas Availability. People line up to buy fuel canisters for domestic use in an urban center. The ripple effects of a war being fought nearly 3,000km away are now reaching India's households. As aerial attacks on Iran disrupt energy deliveries through the key maritime chokepoint, availability of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) are shrinking across India, forcing restaurants to reduce offerings, reduce operating times and in some cases cease operations entirely. Social media is flooded by video clips showing queues outside cooking-gas dealers across Indian urban and rural areas as worries over fuel supplies grow. Commercial LPG users appear the hardest struck: the sharpest squeeze is in restaurant kitchens. "The situation is dire. Kitchen fuel simply is unavailable," says a spokesperson of the a major restaurant body. Most eateries run either on commercial LPG cylinders or direct gas lines, and the shortages are now being felt across the country. "Numerous restaurants have shut down - some in northern India, many in the southern states. People are adopting traditional burners and electric cookers to keep their operations going." Regional Impact In Mumbai, local news say up to a fifth of hotels and restaurants are already completely or partially closed as commercial LPG supplies dry up. In the southern cities of Bangalore and Madras, some restaurants say their fuel reserves have dwindled with little backup. "We can only make coffee and no food items - it is truly dismal. Operations will be impacted," says a business operator in Bengaluru. A food joint in a southern city which has closed its doors due to a scarcity of cooking gas. Restaurant owners are scrambling to adapt. "Menus are being curtailed, some are opening only for dinner and reducing hours," an industry representative says, adding that closures are changing as supplies come and go. "A number of eateries in Delhi were shut yesterday - some have resumed operations. It's a changing landscape." Retailers observe a surge in sales of electric cookers, with some saying they are running out of them. Official Position Yet, the authorities states there is adequate supply. India has more than a vast number of domestic LPG users and spokespersons say stocks are being reallocated to households as tensions from the regional hostilities affect energy markets. Approximately 60% of India's LPG is brought in from overseas, and about nine out of ten of those imports pass through the critical waterway, the vital passage now effectively closed by the conflict. The oil ministry says that it ordered refineries to increase LPG output for domestic use, enhancing domestic production by about 25%. Non-domestic supply is being reserved for essential sectors such as healthcare and education, while distribution will be "just and open". "A degree of anxious stocking and stockpiling has been sparked by false reports. The regular refill period for household cylinders remains about two-and-a-half days," says a senior official. Spreading Anxiety Now the concern is moving beyond kitchens. On digital platforms, a widely shared video from Chennai shows a lengthy, winding line of motorbikes outside a petrol pump. "Anxiety is palpable," the description reads. India brings in up to most of the crude it consumes, leaving it significantly susceptible to problems in global supplies. According to reports from energy specialists, concerns about India's broader energy security may be overstated. India imports the overwhelming majority of its oil. Around 50% of its crude oil imports - about millions of barrels a day - travel through the strait, largely from Middle Eastern nations. Even if petroleum transit through the Strait of Hormuz are disrupted, the shortfall could be partly made up by higher imports of discounted Russian crude, according to a sector expert. Based on shipping data and industry information, additional Russian crude imports could reach around a significant volume of barrels a day, reducing India's effective deficit from exposure to the Strait of Hormuz to about 1.6 million barrels a day. "A large quantity of Russian oil barrels are currently floating on ships in the Indian Ocean and, with only key buyers as major buyers, those barrels remain a available backup," an analyst noted. Cooking Gas: The Critical Weakness The real vulnerability is kitchen fuel, analysts say. India consumes roughly one million barrels a day, but produces only 40-45% domestically, importing the rest - 80–90% through Hormuz. Refineries can tweak operations to extract a bit more LPG, but even a limited rise would only increase domestic supply to about around half of demand, leaving the country significantly leaning on imports. In short: "Petroleum shortage concerns can be somewhat alleviated through alternative sourcing. Refined product supply remains relatively comfortable. Cooking gas supply is the critical issue to monitor in the coming weeks." What may be heightening the concern on the ground is not just scarcity but erratic supply chains - and the familiar spectre of panic buying. An industry representative states price gouging. "Distributors are taking advantage of the situation - black-marketing cylinders and selling them at a premium. In one small town, I heard of cylinders being accumulated and auctioned off." For now, India's energy imports may be buffered by global trade flows. But in restaurants across the country, the more pressing concern is simple: how to get the next gas canister.
People line up to buy fuel canisters for domestic use in an urban center. The ripple effects of a war being fought nearly 3,000km away are now reaching India's households. As aerial attacks on Iran disrupt energy deliveries through the key maritime chokepoint, availability of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) are shrinking across India, forcing restaurants to reduce offerings, reduce operating times and in some cases cease operations entirely. Social media is flooded by video clips showing queues outside cooking-gas dealers across Indian urban and rural areas as worries over fuel supplies grow. Commercial LPG users appear the hardest struck: the sharpest squeeze is in restaurant kitchens. "The situation is dire. Kitchen fuel simply is unavailable," says a spokesperson of the a major restaurant body. Most eateries run either on commercial LPG cylinders or direct gas lines, and the shortages are now being felt across the country. "Numerous restaurants have shut down - some in northern India, many in the southern states. People are adopting traditional burners and electric cookers to keep their operations going." Regional Impact In Mumbai, local news say up to a fifth of hotels and restaurants are already completely or partially closed as commercial LPG supplies dry up. In the southern cities of Bangalore and Madras, some restaurants say their fuel reserves have dwindled with little backup. "We can only make coffee and no food items - it is truly dismal. Operations will be impacted," says a business operator in Bengaluru. A food joint in a southern city which has closed its doors due to a scarcity of cooking gas. Restaurant owners are scrambling to adapt. "Menus are being curtailed, some are opening only for dinner and reducing hours," an industry representative says, adding that closures are changing as supplies come and go. "A number of eateries in Delhi were shut yesterday - some have resumed operations. It's a changing landscape." Retailers observe a surge in sales of electric cookers, with some saying they are running out of them. Official Position Yet, the authorities states there is adequate supply. India has more than a vast number of domestic LPG users and spokespersons say stocks are being reallocated to households as tensions from the regional hostilities affect energy markets. Approximately 60% of India's LPG is brought in from overseas, and about nine out of ten of those imports pass through the critical waterway, the vital passage now effectively closed by the conflict. The oil ministry says that it ordered refineries to increase LPG output for domestic use, enhancing domestic production by about 25%. Non-domestic supply is being reserved for essential sectors such as healthcare and education, while distribution will be "just and open". "A degree of anxious stocking and stockpiling has been sparked by false reports. The regular refill period for household cylinders remains about two-and-a-half days," says a senior official. Spreading Anxiety Now the concern is moving beyond kitchens. On digital platforms, a widely shared video from Chennai shows a lengthy, winding line of motorbikes outside a petrol pump. "Anxiety is palpable," the description reads. India brings in up to most of the crude it consumes, leaving it significantly susceptible to problems in global supplies. According to reports from energy specialists, concerns about India's broader energy security may be overstated. India imports the overwhelming majority of its oil. Around 50% of its crude oil imports - about millions of barrels a day - travel through the strait, largely from Middle Eastern nations. Even if petroleum transit through the Strait of Hormuz are disrupted, the shortfall could be partly made up by higher imports of discounted Russian crude, according to a sector expert. Based on shipping data and industry information, additional Russian crude imports could reach around a significant volume of barrels a day, reducing India's effective deficit from exposure to the Strait of Hormuz to about 1.6 million barrels a day. "A large quantity of Russian oil barrels are currently floating on ships in the Indian Ocean and, with only key buyers as major buyers, those barrels remain a available backup," an analyst noted. Cooking Gas: The Critical Weakness The real vulnerability is kitchen fuel, analysts say. India consumes roughly one million barrels a day, but produces only 40-45% domestically, importing the rest - 80–90% through Hormuz. Refineries can tweak operations to extract a bit more LPG, but even a limited rise would only increase domestic supply to about around half of demand, leaving the country significantly leaning on imports. In short: "Petroleum shortage concerns can be somewhat alleviated through alternative sourcing. Refined product supply remains relatively comfortable. Cooking gas supply is the critical issue to monitor in the coming weeks." What may be heightening the concern on the ground is not just scarcity but erratic supply chains - and the familiar spectre of panic buying. An industry representative states price gouging. "Distributors are taking advantage of the situation - black-marketing cylinders and selling them at a premium. In one small town, I heard of cylinders being accumulated and auctioned off." For now, India's energy imports may be buffered by global trade flows. But in restaurants across the country, the more pressing concern is simple: how to get the next gas canister.