India’s fuel stocks secure amid global crisis; govt dismisses shortage rumours

The government on Thursday categorically stated that Indias petroleum and LPG supply situation is fully secure and under control calling upon citizens not to be misled by a deliberately mischievous coordinated campaign of misinformation that is being carried out to spread unjustified panicIndia has 74 days of total reserve capacity and actual stock cover is around 60 days right now including crude stocks products stocks and the dedicated strategic storage in caverns even as we are on the 27th day of the Middle East crisis the Petroleum Ministry said adding that all retail fuel outlets have enough suppliesThere is no shortage of petrol diesel or LPG anywhere in the country it said in a statement adding that nearly two months of steady supply is available for every Indian citizen regardless of what happens globally reported IANSNext 2 months of crude procurement has also been secured India is completely secure for the next many months and the quantity in strategic cavern storage becomes secondary in such a supply situation Therefore any representation that Indias reserves are depleted or insufficient should be dismissed with the disdain it deserves the ministry highlightedSome countries have taken measures India does not feel the need for itAccording to IANS across the world countries are dealing with price increases rationing oddeven vehicle restrictions and forced station closures Few have declared a National Energy EmergencyIndia DOES NOT FEEL THE NEED FOR ANY SUCH MEASURES While other nations are rationing there is no shortage of supplies in India Where isolated instances of panic buying occurred at select pumps they were driven by deliberate misinformation spread by certain videos on social media the ministry emphasisedDespite the surge in demand at such pumps fuel was dispensed to all the consumers and oil company depots have been operational through the night to ramp up suppliesThe ministry further stated that steps have also been taken by oil companies to increase credit to petrol pumps to over 3 days from the earlier allowed 1 day in order to ensure that there is no shortage of petrol and diesel at any pump due to working capital issues of pump owners reported IANSNotably despite the situation at the Strait of Hormuz India is today receiving more crude oil from its 41plus suppliers across the world than what was previously arriving through the StraitsEvery Indian refinery is running at over 100 per cent utilisation Crude oil supplies for next 60 days have already been tied up by Indian Oil companies There is NO supply gap the ministry saidThere is no LPG shortage India is producing more than it needs to importAccording to IANS there is also no LPG shortage Following the LPG Control Order issued by this Ministry domestic refinery production has been ramped up by 40 per cent bringing daily LPG output to 50 TMT more than 60 per cent of our requirement against a total daily requirement of around 80 TMTThe net daily import requirement has consequently come down to only 30 TMT mdash meaning India is now producing much more than it needs to importOver and above domestic production 800 TMT of assured inbound LPG cargoes are already secured and en route from the United States Russia Australia and other countries arriving across Indias 22 LPG import terminals mdash double the 11 terminals that existed in 2014 the ministry saidldquoApproximately one full month of supply is firmly arranged with additional procurement being finalised continuouslyrdquo it added reported IANSOil companies are successfully delivering over 50 lakh cylinders every day Commercial cylinder allocations have been raised to 50 per cent in consultation with state governments to avoid hoarding or black marketingGovernment promotes PNG as cleaner cheaper fuel assures LPG supply is secureMoreover piped natural gas is being promoted mdash in full coordination with state governments mdash because it is cheaper cleaner and safer for Indian householdsAs per IANS India already produces 92 MMSCMD of natural gas domestically out of a total daily requirement of 191 MMSCMD making India far less importdependent on gas than on LPGCity gas distribution has expanded from 57 geographical areas in 2014 to over 300 today Domestic PNG connections have grown from 25 lakh to over 15 crore This transition was well underway before the current situation arose and reflects Indias longterm energy strategyThe claim that PNG is being pushed because LPG is running out is misinformation LPG supply is secure PNG is simply a better more affordable and highly convenient fuel for Indias households said the ministryThe ministry urged all citizens to rely only on official government communications for information regarding fuel and gas availability reported IANSInputs from IANS