India takes emergency gas supply measures

India has invoked special legislation to ensure adequate gas supplies, which have been disrupted due to the escalating Middle East conflict.

The federal government on Tuesday brought into play the Essential Commodities Act (ECA) to ensure domestic cooking gas supplies for its 1.4 billion population.

The primary objective of the ECA is to protect consumers from unreasonable price spikes and artificial shortages, giving the government powers to regulate production, storage, and transportation of commodities.

The Middle East conflict triggered by the US-Israeli attacks on Iran and the latter’s retaliation has resulted in shipping activities coming to a virtual halt through the Strait of Hormuz. New Delhi imports 85% of its oil and nearly half of its natural gas.

About half of the country’s oil supplies and 55% of liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments are routed through the vital Strait of Hormuz. The region accounted for about 55% of India’s crude imports, or about 2.74 million barrels per day as of January.

The federal government has directed refineries and petrochemical units to increase production of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and divert key hydrocarbon streams to the LPG pool, the Economic Times reported.