New Delhi, June 29 -- Maritime choke points have always threatened global supply lines of critical commodities like oil and gas. Yet history shows that most have never truly choked. The Suez Canal's six-day blockage in 2021, when the mega-containership Ever Given ran aground, disrupted India's exports to Europe but left energy imports untouched. The Bab el-Mandeb disruptions during the 2023 Red Sea crisis proved short-lived, although clouds of uncertainty still hang over the Strait. The Strait of Hormuz, however, is different and far more consequential.
Through this narrow waterway transits 40 per cent of India's crude imports, 60 per cent of its LNG, 92 per cent of its LPG, and 71 per cent of its urea. It has historically stayed open despite the Iran-Iraq war, sanctions on Iran, and the 12-day Operation Enduring Lion in June 2025, when US and Israeli strikes targeted Iranian nuclear sites. Even then, though Iran's Majlis voted to approve measures to close the Strait as a pointed warning of intent, the Strait remained open.
The closure of the Strait on 28 February, therefore, came as a rude and unexpected shock. Its impact on the global economy was severe; on India, disproportionate. Unlike crude, for which alternative suppliers are relatively easy to find, LNG and LPG present a far stiffer challenge. LPG fuels the kitchens of 333 million Indian households. LNG drives industries and is a key feedstock for fertilisers. Any prolonged disruption threatens both energy security and food security simultaneously.
That is when India's diplomacy came into its own. Within a week of the crisis, an Inter-Ministerial Group was constituted, demonstrating a whole-of-government response reminiscent of India's COVID mobilisation. The web of crude sourcing expanded to 40 countries. For LNG and LPG, India pivoted sharply: the US, Norway, Canada, and Algeria stepped in to replace Gulf suppliers for 70 per cent of India's seaborne LPG requirements. Non-traditional suppliers like Russia and the US climbed to the top of the import roster.
The most remarkable achievement, however, was securing ship transits through the Strait itself, which is a feat many deemed impossible. With the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas prioritising vessels, the Ministry of External Affairs liaising with Tehran and other actors, and the Indian Navy facilitating safe passage, supply lines were kept open, even if diminished. Prior to the 17 June MoU between Iran and the US, India had secured the transit of 12 LPG vessels carrying 111 TMT, 2 LNG vessels carrying 156 TMT, and 2 crude vessels carrying 410 TMT. Following the MoU, 11 additional vessels have crossed, with supply continuing to expand.
This required sustained back-channel engagement not only with Tehran and Gulf capitals, but also between Indian refiners and major suppliers like QatarEnergy, ADNOC, and ARAMCO. For the world's third-largest energy consumer, such operational diplomacy is rarely visible but profoundly consequential.
The US-Iran peace deal and the gradual reopening of the Strait have brought welcome relief. War risk premiums have eased. The Indian crude basket has retreated to USD 70.71 per barrel, matching the pre-conflict benchmark, which is a significant fiscal reprieve. The government responded promptly by lifting sectoral restrictions on non-domestic packed LPG for commercial use.
Looking ahead, the meeting between Petroleum Minister Hardeep Puri and his Iranian counterpart on the margins of the BRICS Energy Ministers' Meeting opens promising possibilities. Iran, once among India's top oil and gas suppliers before OFAC secondary sanctions kicked in in May 2019, is keen to reclaim market share. India, for its part, has every reason to re-engage. The IEA's June 2026 Oil Market Report projects an additional 8 million barrels per day of crude supply for 2027 as Middle Eastern oilfields restore output. This is a supply dividend India should be positioned to capture. It would also be timely to revive discussions with NIOC on investing in the Farzad B gas field (successfully discovered by ONGC Videsh in 2008 but long stalled).
When the world scrambled to secure safe passage for energy-laden ships, India secured more transits than any other country. That is a tribute to India's energy diplomacy at its finest. But diplomacy must be matched by structural resilience. The diversification of supply sources, accelerated out of necessity, must now be institutionalised as policy. Above all, India must urgently expand its Strategic Petroleum Reserves. A nation that consumes as much energy as India cannot afford to be caught short the next time a choke point lives up to its name.
Views expressed are personal. The writer is a former Indian Ambassador to the UAE
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.