India is not facing any crisis in cooking gas supply, Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said in New Delhi. He told an industry conference that supplies are running normally even amid heightened tensions in West Asia.
Puri said daily LPG production has been increased to 54,000 tonnes from 36,000 tonnes to ensure uninterrupted availability. He added that the country currently has stocks equivalent to 60 days of crude oil, 60 days of LNG and 45 days of LPG.
The minister urged people not to panic or believe rumours. He said the government is working to keep retail prices unchanged, but acknowledged this is creating a financial burden on oil marketing companies.
According to Puri, oil companies are incurring losses of about Rs 1,000 crore per day, and the current quarter alone could see losses of up to Rs 1 lakh crore. He cited per-unit losses of Rs 14 per litre on petrol, Rs 42 per litre on diesel and Rs 674 per LPG cylinder.
He also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent call for fuel conservation should not be seen as a sign of an imminent lockdown. While noting that prolonged conflict could require lifestyle adjustments, Puri said the Centre is using alternative routes to maintain supplies despite the situation around the Strait of Hormuz.
