“India navigated well in energy security during global uncertainty”, said Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Hon’ble Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas, Government of India
News Mania Desk/ 3rd October 2026
MCCI organized an Exclusive Session on ‘India’s Energy Security: Navigating Geopolitical Uncertainty’ with Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Hon’ble Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas, Government of India on Monday, 28 September, 2026 at The Park Hotel, Kolkata.
Shri Hardeep Singh Puri said that in every crisis, there is a challenge. Challenge throws up opportunities.
Referring to the uncertainty caused by the geopolitical turmoil on energy security, Shri Puri said that it is turbulence, not uncertainty. The duty before the government was to insulate 1.4 billion people from fluctuations. Global energy prices had gone up by more than 70 per cent, while that in India was much lower.
“This was because of the resolution of the Prime Minister whose mantra was to ensure availability and affordability. The prices of petrol and diesel were slashed thrice by reducing the excise duties”, he said.
Hon’ble Minister viewed that the oil marketing companies have been bleeding with huge under recoveries. They are good corporate citizens. But we won’t let them sink. When prices are high, upstream companies do well while downstream ones lose.
According to him, the country has navigated well so far. “But this world is full of unpredictability. During the crisis, none of the retail outlets went dry, he said.
Shri Puri said that there is no shortage of energy per se in the world. There is crude availability. The issue is of supply routes. But what will happen if the Strait of Hormuz closes down? Nearly 40 per cent of the global energy supply will get choked.
His anxious moment was not of crude supply. His real concern was of LPG supply as there are 33.5 crore LPG connections almost covering the entire population of the country. There is LNG, but the bulk of the people are dependent on LPG.
Stating that the economy of West Bengal has declined over the last 50 years, he said West Bengal will occupy centre stage due to recent developments.
“Economic progress of West Bengal is of highest priority of the Centre. That is why the India Energy Week is being held here”, he said.
Shri Puri said that the Centre has earmarked a budget of Rs 84,000 crore towards exploration and production (E&P).
Earlier, Shri Munish Jhajharia, President, MCCI in his Welcome Address said that India is today the world’s third-largest primary energy consumer and its crude oil requirement is approximately 85% dependent on imports.
He mentioned that for India’s business community, affordable energy is as important as available energy.
He further added that the Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s most critical energy chokepoints, accounting for roughly one-fifth of global oil and LNG flows.
Lastly, he highlighted that India currently has 5.33 million tonnes of strategic petroleum reserve capacity, providing approximately 9.5 days of crude-oil requirement. In addition, the country has overall crude and petroleum-product storage capacity equivalent to about 74 days of cover, including stocks held by oil marketing companies.
