New Delhi, Aug. 25 -- India has sharply increased purchases of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the United States as disruptions linked to the conflict in West Asia constrain supplies from traditional Gulf suppliers, data from maritime intelligence firm Kpler showed.
India imported about 0.62 million tonnes of LPG from the United States in August, in addition to 0.89 million tonnes in July, accounting for more than 73 per cent of the country's LPG imports, according to Kpler data.
The July US volume was almost equal to the highest-ever monthly LPG import from the UAE, India's traditional supplier, of 0.891 million tonnes in October 2025. Imports from Gulf suppliers have fallen sharply after the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, following the outbreak of war between Iran and the United States. The waterway is a key shipping route for crude oil and gas exported by Gulf producers to major consumers, including India.
UAE LPG imports fell to about 1,40,000 tonnes in August, while Qatar supplied around 60,000 tonnes, Kpler data showed. Saudi Arabia supplied no LPG to India in either July or August.
The shift has also been visible in LNG, although India's sourcing pattern has been more diversified.
LNG imports from Qatar, India's largest source of the fuel, fell to zero in April, while US supplies rose to about 0.75 million tonnes in August from 0.72 million tonnes in July. Qatar has historically supplied as much as 1.2 million tonnes of LNG a month to India.
"The shift towards the US has broadly continued over the past few months, particularly for LPG," said Sumit Ritolia, senior manager - modelling. "I would, however, be cautious about viewing this purely as India deliberately replacing Middle Eastern supplies with US volumes. A large part of the change has been driven by constrained Middle Eastern availability and the need for Indian buyers to diversify and secure replacement cargoes."
"For LNG, the supplier mix has been somewhat more fluid, with India sourcing incremental cargoes not only from the US but also from other Atlantic Basin and non-traditional suppliers. So, while the US has become increasingly important, the broader story is one of supply diversification following reduced Middle Eastern availability."
A brief easing of tensions between Iran and the United States has so far not produced a meaningful or sustained decline in US supplies to India, Ritolia said, noting that energy trade flows do not adjust immediately to geopolitical developments because of contractual commitments, cargoes already in transit and procurement lead times.
The increased reliance on more distant suppliers is also raising India's import costs. "There is clearly an additional cost associated with replacing nearby Middle Eastern supply with cargoes from the US and other more distant origins," he said. "Freight is higher because of the significantly longer voyage, while tighter global availability has also raised the underlying commodity cost."
"However, I would not attribute the entire increase in India's LNG or LPG import bill to the shift towards US supplies. The increase reflects a combination of higher international prices, tighter Middle Eastern availability, freight and insurance costs, and longer supply routes. In the current environment, India is effectively paying a premium for supply security and diversification."
While India's LNG and LPG sourcing has shifted toward the United States, Russia continues to be the country's largest crude oil supplier despite the threat of the Graham Bill and potential secondary tariffs, Ritolia said.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.