 "Puri stated that the government has been diversifying LPG sources to ensure reliability for Indian consumers. (Reuters)")
India has opened its LPG market to the United States, with state-run oil companies signing agreements to source around 10 per cent of the country’s annual LPG imports from American suppliers. The move forms part of a wider effort to secure stable and affordable energy supplies, said Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday.
Announcing the development, the Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas of India, Hardeep Singh Puri, took to X and wrote, “A historic first! One of the largest and the world’s fastest growing LPG market opens up to the United States.”
PSU firms finalise 2.2 MTPA contract
Puri stated that the government has been diversifying LPG sources to ensure reliability for Indian consumers. “In our endeavour to provide secure affordable supplies of LPG to the people of India, we have been diversifying our LPG sourcing,” he said. He added that Indian PSU oil companies have concluded a one-year deal to import around 2.2 MTPA of LPG for the contract year 2026, representing “close to 10% of our annual imports” to be sourced from the US Gulf Coast. According to him, this marks “the first structured contract of US LPG for the Indian market".
Puri noted that the purchase is benchmarked to Mount Belvieu prices, and a team from IndianOil, BPCL and HPCL visited the United States to engage with major producers before finalising the agreement. He also referenced government measures to shield households from global price fluctuations. “our PSU oil companies have been providing LPG at the lowest global prices to all our mothers and sisters,” he said, adding that even when international prices rose by over 60 percent, Ujjwala consumers continued to receive cylinders at ₹500-550 while the actual cost exceeded ₹1100. He stated that the government incurred costs of over ₹40000 crores last year to protect consumers.
Centre approves Rs 7,712 crore in fresh electronics investments
The Central government has approved another tranche of applications under the Electronic Component Manufacturing Scheme, with total investments amounting to Rs 7,712 crore. IT secretary S Krishnan announced on 17 November that 17 applications had been cleared from a pool of 249.
The approved proposals span several states, including the first investment from Jammu and Kashmir in the current tranche, alongside projects from Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. Among the 17 approvals are Aequs Consumer Products Private Limited with an investment of Rs 1,500 crore and projected production worth Rs 7,669 crore, Secure Circuits, TE Connectivity India Private Limited with Rs 612 crore, Jabil Circuit Private Limited with Rs 957 crore, Zetfab, Zetchem with Rs 55 crore, Micropack Pvt with Rs 54 crore, Asux Safety Components, Uno Minda with Rs 264 crore, AT&S India, HI-Q, Infopower Technologies Private Limited, Syrma Mobility Private Limited with Rs 250 crore and J&K-based Meena Electrotech Private Limited with Rs 111 crore.
Quick Reads
View AllKrishnan emphasised that the scheme aims to reinforce India’s manufacturing base. “The basic objective is to deepen the value chain in India. The world is looking at diversification of value chains, and India is a key player in that,” he said.