‘Result of a decade-long energy transition strategy’: FM Sitharaman says LPG supply is steady

LPG shortage: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that steady flow of LPG supply in the country is the result of a “decade-long energy transition strategy”. She said that the West Asia conflict has indeed thrown up a new crisis, but India has a steady flow, thanks to its self-reliance and an increase in production of LPG. 

Replying to a debate in Parliament, FM Sitharaman said, "The Middle East crisis has come up with a new challenge...Overwhelmingly, 90 per cent of the 65 per cent LPG imports come from the Strait of Hormuz. As a result, there was speculation about whether we would get it or not…There are enough reports on how we are ensuring a steady flow during these turbulent times.”

She said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s insistence on self-reliance and increasing production to meet India’s energy demands has come to help now. The FM said India has developed its power sector in a big way, which is supporting the needs in many different ways. 

FM Sitharaman said there is no energy shortage now, and the installed power generation capacity has more than doubled since 2014.

"Even in the LPG sector, we have been building up capacities and even at this time, the way we have ramped up domestic capacity in LPG is also coming to help," Sitharaman added. "As a result, domestically also, we are ramping up capacities to supply LPG and domestic LPG production is going up about 25 per cent," she said.

"So to ensure that households do not suffer, not only steady streams of shipping lines coming in, but domestically we have also ramped up the capacity for production of the LPG diverting from other hydrocarbon material to LPG production,” she said, adding that  domestic supplies will be adequately streamlined, and supplies will remain steady.

The only reason India has been able to ramp up 25 per cent LPG production literally overnight is due to its policy changes, and has not happened by accident, said the FM. 

"Steady policy backed up approach by the Government of India has actually resulted in us being able to suddenly improve on something so that any situation, in which any additional support can happen. It is a result of a decade-long energy transition strategy launched by the Prime Minister in 2014," she said.