Two More Indian Tankers Carrying 94,000 Tonnes Of Cooking Gas Cross Strait Of Hormuz

NEW DELHI, March 30 (Bernama-PTI) -- Two more Indian-flagged Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) tankers, carrying roughly a day’s supply of the country’s cooking gas, have safely navigated through the war-hit Strait of Hormuz and are expected to reach Indian shores in the next couple of days, Press Trust of India (PTI) reported Sunday.

“Two LPG carriers, BW TYR and BW ELM, carrying a combined LPG cargo of about 94,000 tonnes, have safely transited the region and are moving towards Indian shores,” an official statement said.

 While BW TYR is proceeding towards Mumbai with an expected arrival on March 31, BW ELM is en route to New Mangalore with an estimated arrival date of April 1.

The United States (US) and Israel attacks on Iran and Tehran’s sweeping retaliation have all but halted shipping through the strait - the narrow shipping lane that is a conduit for oil and gas exports from Gulf countries to the world.

Iran, however, last week said “non-hostile vessels” may transit the waterway after coordinating with Iranian authorities.

Previously, four Indian-flagged LPG tankers had safely sailed through the strait. Pine Gas and Jag Vasant, carrying 92,612 tonnes of LPG, reached Indian ports between March 26 and March 28.

Prior to that, MT Shivalik and MT Nanda Devi, carrying about 92,712 tonnes of LPG, had reached Mundra port in Gujarat on March 16 and Kandla port in the state on March 17, respectively.

For a country that relies on imports from Gulf nations to meet as much as 60 per cent of its cooking gas needs, the arrivals will help ease the worst LPG shortage it is battling in decades.

India consumed 33.15 million tonnes of LPG last year, with imports accounting for about 60 per cent of demand.

As much as 90 per cent of those imports came from West Asia.

With the strait all but shut, it is sourcing LPG from nations like the US and Argentina.

-- BERNAMA-PTI