🔗 Share this article ‘A Critical Scenario’: Conflict on Iran Constricts India's Cooking-Gas Stock. People line up to buy fuel canisters for home cooking in a major Indian city. The shockwaves of a war being fought nearly 3,000km away are now impacting India's kitchens. As military actions on Iran disrupt energy deliveries through the Strait of Hormuz, availability of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) are shrinking across India, compelling restaurants to shorten food lists, shorten hours and in some cases cease operations entirely. Social media is flooded by video clips showing crowds outside LPG distributors across Indian cities and towns as anxieties over fuel supplies escalate. Businesses appear the worst hit: the most severe shortage is in restaurant kitchens. "Conditions are critical. LPG simply isn't available," says a official of the a major restaurant body. Most restaurants run either on industrial fuel canisters or piped gas, and the lack of supply are now being noticed across the country. "A lot of restaurants have ceased operations - some in the capital, many in the south. People are turning to traditional burners and induction stoves to keep their operations going." City-Specific Fallout In a financial hub, accounts say up to a fifth of hotels and restaurants are already operating at reduced capacity as cylinder availability dry up. In the southern cities of Bengaluru and Chennai, some establishments say their gas stocks have depleted with scarce alternatives. "Our menu is reduced to coffee and no other dishes - it is nothing less than pathetic. Operations will be impacted," says a business operator in Bengaluru. A food joint in a southern city which has ceased operations due to a scarcity of kitchen fuel. Restaurant operators 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. "Several establishments in Delhi were shut yesterday - some have resumed operations. It's a changing landscape." Retailers report a increase in sales of electric cookers, with some saying they are facing stockouts. Government Stance Yet, the authorities maintains there is sufficient stock. India has more than 300 million household consumers and officials say cylinders are being prioritized to households as conflict-related stress from the regional hostilities impact energy markets. Roughly a majority of India's LPG is brought in from overseas, and about nine out of ten of those consignments pass through the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic bottleneck now significantly disrupted by the hostilities. The oil ministry says that it instructed refineries to boost LPG output for home needs, lifting domestic production by about a quarter. Commercial stock is being reserved for vital industries such as healthcare and education, while distribution will be "equitable and clear". "A degree of anxious stocking and hoarding has been sparked by misinformation. The normal delivery cycle for home fuel remains about 60 hours," says a senior official. Spreading Anxiety Now the worry is extending beyond kitchens. On social media, a widely shared video from Chennai shows a long, snaking queue of scooters outside a gas outlet. "The panic is real," the caption reads. India imports up to a vast majority of the oil it uses, leaving it particularly vulnerable to problems in international markets. According to data from industry analysts, concerns about India's broader energy security may be premature. India imports 90% of its oil. Around half of its crude oil imports - about millions of barrels a day - travel through the strait, largely from regional suppliers. Even if oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz are hindered, the gap could be partly made up by higher imports of Russian petroleum, according to a industry commentator. Based on shipping data and expert analysis, incremental Russian crude imports could reach around a significant volume of barrels a day, narrowing India's effective gap from exposure to the Strait of Hormuz to about a substantial volume of barrels a day. "Around 25-30 million Russian oil barrels are currently in transit at sea in the Indian Ocean and, with only India and China as major buyers, those barrels remain a ready fallback," an analyst noted. Kitchen Fuel: The Primary Concern The primary concern is kitchen fuel, experts note. India consumes roughly a million barrels a day, but produces only less than half domestically, importing the rest - most of it through the chokepoint. Refineries can modify output to produce a bit more LPG, but even a 10-20% boost would only lift domestic supply to about 47-50% of demand, leaving the country largely dependent on imports. In short: "Petroleum shortage concerns can be partially mitigated through varied suppliers. Refined product supply remains fairly adequate. LPG availability is the critical issue to monitor in the coming weeks." What may be heightening the anxiety on the ground is not just scarcity but erratic supply chains - and the usual problem of hoarding. An industry representative states opportunistic profiteering. "Distributors are exploiting the situation - selling fuel on the black market and selling them at a premium. In one small town, I heard of cylinders being accumulated and sold to the highest bidder." For now, India's energy imports may be protected by worldwide shipping. But in kitchens across the country, the more pressing concern is simple: how to get the next gas canister.
People line up to buy fuel canisters for home cooking in a major Indian city. The shockwaves of a war being fought nearly 3,000km away are now impacting India's kitchens. As military actions on Iran disrupt energy deliveries through the Strait of Hormuz, availability of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) are shrinking across India, compelling restaurants to shorten food lists, shorten hours and in some cases cease operations entirely. Social media is flooded by video clips showing crowds outside LPG distributors across Indian cities and towns as anxieties over fuel supplies escalate. Businesses appear the worst hit: the most severe shortage is in restaurant kitchens. "Conditions are critical. LPG simply isn't available," says a official of the a major restaurant body. Most restaurants run either on industrial fuel canisters or piped gas, and the lack of supply are now being noticed across the country. "A lot of restaurants have ceased operations - some in the capital, many in the south. People are turning to traditional burners and induction stoves to keep their operations going." City-Specific Fallout In a financial hub, accounts say up to a fifth of hotels and restaurants are already operating at reduced capacity as cylinder availability dry up. In the southern cities of Bengaluru and Chennai, some establishments say their gas stocks have depleted with scarce alternatives. "Our menu is reduced to coffee and no other dishes - it is nothing less than pathetic. Operations will be impacted," says a business operator in Bengaluru. A food joint in a southern city which has ceased operations due to a scarcity of kitchen fuel. Restaurant operators 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. "Several establishments in Delhi were shut yesterday - some have resumed operations. It's a changing landscape." Retailers report a increase in sales of electric cookers, with some saying they are facing stockouts. Government Stance Yet, the authorities maintains there is sufficient stock. India has more than 300 million household consumers and officials say cylinders are being prioritized to households as conflict-related stress from the regional hostilities impact energy markets. Roughly a majority of India's LPG is brought in from overseas, and about nine out of ten of those consignments pass through the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic bottleneck now significantly disrupted by the hostilities. The oil ministry says that it instructed refineries to boost LPG output for home needs, lifting domestic production by about a quarter. Commercial stock is being reserved for vital industries such as healthcare and education, while distribution will be "equitable and clear". "A degree of anxious stocking and hoarding has been sparked by misinformation. The normal delivery cycle for home fuel remains about 60 hours," says a senior official. Spreading Anxiety Now the worry is extending beyond kitchens. On social media, a widely shared video from Chennai shows a long, snaking queue of scooters outside a gas outlet. "The panic is real," the caption reads. India imports up to a vast majority of the oil it uses, leaving it particularly vulnerable to problems in international markets. According to data from industry analysts, concerns about India's broader energy security may be premature. India imports 90% of its oil. Around half of its crude oil imports - about millions of barrels a day - travel through the strait, largely from regional suppliers. Even if oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz are hindered, the gap could be partly made up by higher imports of Russian petroleum, according to a industry commentator. Based on shipping data and expert analysis, incremental Russian crude imports could reach around a significant volume of barrels a day, narrowing India's effective gap from exposure to the Strait of Hormuz to about a substantial volume of barrels a day. "Around 25-30 million Russian oil barrels are currently in transit at sea in the Indian Ocean and, with only India and China as major buyers, those barrels remain a ready fallback," an analyst noted. Kitchen Fuel: The Primary Concern The primary concern is kitchen fuel, experts note. India consumes roughly a million barrels a day, but produces only less than half domestically, importing the rest - most of it through the chokepoint. Refineries can modify output to produce a bit more LPG, but even a 10-20% boost would only lift domestic supply to about 47-50% of demand, leaving the country largely dependent on imports. In short: "Petroleum shortage concerns can be partially mitigated through varied suppliers. Refined product supply remains fairly adequate. LPG availability is the critical issue to monitor in the coming weeks." What may be heightening the anxiety on the ground is not just scarcity but erratic supply chains - and the usual problem of hoarding. An industry representative states opportunistic profiteering. "Distributors are exploiting the situation - selling fuel on the black market and selling them at a premium. In one small town, I heard of cylinders being accumulated and sold to the highest bidder." For now, India's energy imports may be protected by worldwide shipping. But in kitchens across the country, the more pressing concern is simple: how to get the next gas canister.