Hardeep Singh Puri Commences 2-Day Visit to Qatar to Secure India’s Energy Supplies

Oil Minister Hardeep Singh is on a two-day official visit to Qatar, starting Thursday. The minister is visiting India’s largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplier amid the West Asian conflict and volatile oil and gas prices.

Though a ceasefire was signed between the United States and Iran on Wednesday, hostilities in the region have not ended yet.

Iran on Wednesday reportedly attacked Saudi Arabia’s East-West oil pipeline, which was serving as an alternative to the blocked Strait of Hormuz. The attack came hours after the ceasefire agreement between the warring sides.

On the other hand, Qatar and its natural gas company, QatarEnergy, are the biggest suppliers of LNG to India. Qatar’s Ras refinery was among the first energy units to get hit in the region after the start of the war in West Asia in late February.

Puri’s visit is crucial at this time as India has already put restrictions on the supply and use of natural gas. His visit would seek to secure future supplies from Qatar, a key energy partner for India.

During the last decade, the country’s LPG consumption has increased by 74 percent, mainly because of the government’s push to shift households from polluting and hazardous fuels to cleaner fuel.

Out of the total LPG consumption in India, about 86 percent comes from households, while the rest is from commercial establishments like restaurants, eateries, and hotels.

So far, the government has added 10 crore households under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana. As of March 1, 2025, the total number of active domestic LPG consumers in India stood at 32.94 crore, covering almost every household in the country.

While 60 percent of India’s LPG consumption depends on imports, about 90 percent of these imports were from the Gulf region before the war.

The government has diversified its oil and gas suppliers since the start of the war to limit the impact of the crisis.