West Asia disruption pushes India deeper into US LPG, LNG as Gulf supplies shrink

New Delhi: India's energy import map is shifting towards the United States as the continuing disruption in West Asia restricts supplies of cooking gas and natural gas from traditional Gulf exporters. India imported about 0.62 million tonnes of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) from the US in August, after buying 0.89 million tonnes in July, according to fresh data from maritime intelligence firm Kpler reported on Tuesday. The change has coincided with a sharp drop in supplies from India's traditional Gulf partners. The UAE supplied only about 140,000 tonnes of LPG in August, while Qatar's shipments stood at around 60,000 tonnes. Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, supplied no LPG to India in either July or August, the Kpler data showed. The July surge had already made the US India's dominant LPG supplier. The 0.89 million tonnes imported from America during the month was almost equal to the UAE's record monthly supply of 0.891 million tonnes in October 2025. Before the West Asia disruption, nearly 90 per cent of India's imported LPG came from Gulf countries, while India imports roughly 60 per cent of its overall LPG requirement. US gains ground in LNG too A similar, though less dramatic, shift is visible in liquefied natural gas. India's LNG purchases from the US increased to about 0.75 million tonnes in August from 0.72 million tonnes in July. Qatar, traditionally India's biggest LNG supplier and capable of supplying as much as 1.2 million tonnes in a month, saw shipments to India fall to zero in April amid the disruption. Kpler senior manager Sumit Ritolia, however, said the numbers should not be read simply as India deliberately replacing Middle Eastern energy with US supplies. The change has largely been forced by reduced Gulf availability, compelling Indian buyers to secure replacement cargoes from the US and other suppliers. LNG purchases have also been spread across other Atlantic Basin and non-traditional sources. Why the switch could cost India more The diversification improves supply security but comes with a price. US cargoes have to travel considerably farther to reach India than shipments originating in the Gulf, increasing freight, insurance and financing costs. Tighter global availability has simultaneously pushed up the underlying price of the fuel. An OPIS market assessment in April illustrates the difference. A US-origin evenly split propane-butane LPG cargo delivered to India was assessed at about $975.13 per tonne, compared with roughly $921.60 per tonne for a comparable Arab Gulf cargo, a gap of about $53.5 per tonne, or nearly 6 per cent, at the time. Current premiums can vary substantially with commodity and freight markets. The impact matters because domestic LPG prices are partly insulated from international costs. In June, the government said the cost of supplying a 14.2-kg domestic cylinder had risen to more than Rs 1,600, compared with a retail price of Rs 942 for a general consumer in Delhi. The estimated under-recovery was about Rs 700 per cylinder, while public-sector oil marketing companies had accumulated domestic LPG under-recoveries of about Rs 60,000 crore in FY26. That means prolonged dependence on costlier replacement cargoes could increase the burden on oil marketing companies and, eventually, the government's LPG-support bill if retail prices continue to be shielded. For now, India's switch towards the US is therefore less a permanent realignment than an energy-security response to disrupted Gulf supplies, one that reduces the risk of shortages but makes securing each cargo potentially more expensive.