West Asia Update: LPG supply smooth, commercial deliveries restored to 70%, says Indian govt

The Union government said on Friday that there is no shortage of supplies at auto fuel stations, maintaining that LPG supplies are running smoothly across the country with commercial deliveries restored to about 70 per cent. In an inter-ministerial briefing, officials said that energy demand is up around 8 per cent this year, with higher solar and wind capacity. They also said that there is no shortage of coal at any plant.

Here are key takeaways from the April 10 briefing:

• All imported coal-based power plants are operating successfully
• Around 55 billion tonnes of coal stockpiles available at power plants
• Additional 32 MW capacity to be added soon
• Gas-based power capacity stands at 1.4 per cent; gas plants are operating smoothly
• Torrent Power is importing LNG on its own
• All gas-based power plants have been allowed to import LNG
• 5 kg cylinder supplies have been doubled
• No address proof required to purchase 5 kg cylinders
• Around 1.1 lakh 5 kg cylinders supplied in the last 24 hours

The central government has been aprising the public regularly about the impact of escalations in the Middle East. It has urged citizens to only rely on official sources of information and avoid panic-booking or panic-buying fuels.

This week, tensions eased after the US and Iran reached a ceasefire agreement. However, escalations between Israel and Lebanon continued to keep investors on edge.

(This is a breaking news story. More details will be added shortly.)