NEW DELHI: A panel of oil company executives will review complaints of shortage of commercial LPG cylinders in different cities and make fuel available to meet genuine requirements of hotels and restaurants, a top government source said Tuesday.
"There is no distress in supply. We are meeting all the requirement of domestic households on priority," the official said. Domestic LPG users are being served at an average time of two-and-half-days - the same as pre-war period, he said.
However, due to the disruptions in energy supplies caused by the widening West Asia conflict, there are "limitations" in continuing LPG supplies to industrial and commercial customers for the time being.
This has led to commercial users like hotels and restaurants who buy larger blue-coloured 19-kg cylinders at market price as compared to below-cost 14.2-kg red cylinders for household kitchens, warning of closure. "Complaints of difficulty in procuring commercial LPG in certain quarters started coming in last evening and we have constituted a three-member committee to review each case and make available LPG as per their genuine needs," the official said.
"For LPG supply to other non-domestic sectors, a committee of three Executive Directors (EDs) of Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) have been constituted to review the representations for LPG supply to restaurants/hotels/other industries," the ministry said in a post on X.
In a separate social media post, the three OMCs - Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) - said, "along with ensuring supplies to all domestic (household) customers, it has been decided to make supplies as per requirement to the essential non-domestic sectors such as hospitals, educational institutions etc."
"For LPG supply to other non-domestic sectors, a committee of three Executive Directors of OMCs have been constituted to review the representations and prioritise the LPG supply," it said.
The official said anybody desirous of commercial LPG can approach the committee, whose details have been posted on social media.The committee will review each case and make every effort meet the genuine requirement, he said.
"Since non-domestic LPG supply depends on the availability of imported products, the committee may not be able to address every grievance.
Requests will be considered based on their merits, product availability and appropriate decisions will be made accordingly," oil companies said in the post. Separately, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said India's energy imports are continuing to flow in from different sources and routes.
"We are committed to ensure uninterrupted supply of affordable energy to our domestic consumers," he said. "There is no shortage for domestic consumers and no reason to panic."
The ministry constituted a committee to examine supply issues after a sudden shortage of commercial LPG cylinders alarmed the hospitality sector, with restaurant associations warning that eateries could shut down within days if supplies are not restored.
As the widening conflict in the Middle East disrupted fuel lifelines, including India's LPG supplies, the government has prioritised domestic cooking gas supplies to households. This has led to supply crunch for hotels and restaurants which use market priced commercial LPG.
India consumed some 31.3 million tonnes of LPG annually. As much as 87 per cent of this is in the domestic sector i.e. household kitchens, and the rest in commercial establishments such as hotels and restaurants.
Of this total requirement, as much as 62 per cent is met through imports.
The US and Israel attack on Iran and Tehran's retaliation has shut the Strait of Hormuz - the conduit through which India got 85-90 per cent of its LPG imports from countries like Saudi Arabia.
As alternate sources are being scouted, the limited supplies available meant the government prioritising supplies to the domestic sector, and in process the commercial establishments have suffered.
Industry sources say the disruption has already begun affecting operations in cities like Mumbai and Bengaluru, as hotels and restaurants struggle to secure cooking gas.
While maintaining that the country has adequate fuel stocks, the ministry in recent days directed refineries to maximise LPG output by curtailing petrochemical streams and extended the LPG refill booking cycle to 25 days from 21 days.
"In light of current geopolitical disruptions to fuel supply and constraints on supply of LPG, the ministry has issued orders to oil refineries for higher LPG production and using such extra production for domestic LPG use," the ministry said in the post on X.
"The ministry has prioritised domestic LPG supply to households and introduced a 25 day inter-booking period to avoid hoarding/black marketing." Non-domestic supplies from imported LPG are being prioritised to essential non domestic sectors such as hospitals and educational institutions, it said.