Where Does Piped Gas Come From And Will It Run Out?

27th March 2026 at 3:50 PM

4 minutes read

New Delhi : India is the world’s fourth-largest importer of liquefied natural gas (LNG), and its appetite for the fuel is growing fast. With the US-Israel-Iran conflict bringing the Strait of Hormuz to a near-standstill, the narrow chokepoint through which nearly 20 per cent of the world’s LNG trade transits, the country is staring at supply risks it did not see coming. But before it looks abroad, India does produce some of its own natural gas.

But before it looks abroad, India does produce some of its own natural gas. Here is the full picture of where the country’s gas actually comes from. India is not entirely dependent on imports. In 2023, India’s total domestic gas production reached 36.4 billion cubic metres (bcm), meeting roughly half of the country’s gas demand. This domestic output meets roughly 50% of India’s total natural gas demand, with the other half imported primarily as LNG.

The biggest contributor is the deepwater Krishna-Godavari (KG) basin off the eastern coast. Three fields in the KG basin, namely R Cluster, Satellites Cluster, and MJ, accounted for nearly 25 per cent of India’s total net production of 36 bcm in 2024, and are expected to produce a combined 85 bcm over their lifetime. The northeast plays a significant role. The Assam and Tripura basins have contributed nearly 47 per cent of India’s onshore production and 13 per cent of its total gas supply.

The domestic picture has a ceiling. Until 2030, only moderate growth in domestic production is expected, with output in 2030 projected at just under 38 bcm, only about 8 per cent higher than 2023 levels. Ageing Mumbai offshore fields and plateauing output from the KG-D6 block are dragging the numbers down even as newer projects come online. Simply put, domestic production is not enough. India’s domestic gas supply is unlikely to fulfil all the country’s needs, so it imports LNG to make up the difference.

LNG is natural gas that has been super-cooled to around minus 162 degrees Celsius, shrinking it to about one-600th of its original volume so it can be loaded onto tankers and shipped across oceans. Once it arrives at a port, it is warmed back into gas and pushed into pipelines. It fuels power plants, feeds fertiliser factories that produce urea for farmers, runs industrial boilers, and is piped directly into homes and vehicles as compressed natural gas (CNG) and piped natural gas (PNG).

The Middle East dominates. Qatar has been India’s top supplier for decades, and that is unlikely to change soon. The US has emerged as a fast-growing alternative, with American LNG exports to India rising sharply in recent years. Between 2013 and 2023, India’s LNG imports grew by 70 per cent, and reached 36 bcm in 2024, cementing the country’s position as the fourth-largest LNG importer globally.

UAE, Oman, Australia, Russia, Nigeria and Algeria, giving India a reasonably diversified import portfolio. LNG is cooled to around minus 162 degrees Celsius so it can be shipped in tankers. Once it arrives, it is warmed back into gas at regasification terminals along India’s coastline. Petronet LNG’s terminal at Dahej in Gujarat is by far the busiest. India’s total gas production has increased by nearly 30 per cent between 2020 and 2024, but the import terminals are still running hard to keep pace.

India is also building new terminals, including a facility at Gopalpur on the east coast, to handle the rising volumes expected through the rest of the decade. The US-Israel-Iran war, which escalated in late February 2026, has placed India’s energy security under serious strain. Nearly 50 to 60 per cent of India’s LNG imports, mainly from Qatar and the UAE, and 90 per cent of LPG imports transit through the Strait of Hormuz, are now at a near-standstill.

The disruption has already been felt in Indian kitchens. LPG deliveries are facing delays of seven to 14 days, with households advised booking gaps of 25–45 days to curb demand. Following a drop in LNG output from Qatar, India has been forced to cut production at three of its own urea plants, with ripple effects on fertiliser supply and food production.

Petronet LNG’s Dahej facility is the most exposed, with about 76 per cent dependence on Hormuz-linked supplies. In response, India is actively scouting alternatives. Australia has offered additional gas supplies to help India offset the shortfall, while India is increasing LPG intake from the US Gulf Coast. Canada has also signed a strategic energy partnership with India, with both countries working on India’s first long-term LPG supply arrangement.

LPG, or liquefied petroleum gas, is a different fuel from LNG (propane/butane vs methane), but it travels through the same chokepoint. India imports LPG from six major suppliers: Qatar, the UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Oman and the United States. India is currently the world’s second-largest LPG consumer, and over the past decade, the share of imports in total LPG consumption has grown from 47 per cent in 2014 to about 60 per cent today.

The government has invoked the Essential Commodities Act, conducting over 12,000 raids and seizing more than 15,000 cylinders to combat hoarding and black marketing. Domestic refinery LPG output up 36 per cent. India is also scouting for alternative suppliers, including the United States, Canada and Australia, though shipments from the US take around 45 days on average to reach India, compared to just seven to eight days from Gulf ports.