Path cleared for ships stuck in Persian Gulf (symbolic photo)
Amidst the tension arising in the Persian Gulf, a big relief news has come to light for India. Due to expectations of the announcement of a peace agreement between America and Iran, the movement of commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz seems to be safe again. The LNG carrier ‘Disha’, which arrived in India on Monday, has crossed this route safely. Along with this, the way for 34 other Indian and foreign flag ships stranded in the Gulf region to reach safe Indian ports has also been cleared soon. According to available data, a total of 35 Indian-bound ships were stuck in the Persian Gulf, out of which 13 were Indian flagged ships. Apart from crude oil and gas, these ships are loaded with fertilizers which are very important for the farmers.
Large stock of fertilizer will reach farmers soon
According to Vandana Preyasi, Joint Secretary of the Fertilizer Department, 16 of these ships stuck in the important strait are loaded with fertilizer. Of these, eight have urea, four have DAP, three have sulfur and one ship has ammonia. The arrival of these ships in India will provide great relief to the country’s agricultural sector. Apart from this, if we talk about the remaining ships, 15 ships are carrying crude oil, LNG and LPG, while three ships are carrying other types of cargo. Shipping Ministry Director Opesh Kumar Sharma said that the LNG carrier ‘Disha’ is bringing with it 62,370 tonnes of gas. There is every possibility of this ship reaching Dahej port around June 18. So far, 10 Indian flagged ships and 5 foreign flagged ships have passed this route safely.
Delay in full relief due to damage to machinery
Despite the opening of the supply line, India’s energy problems will not end overnight. The recent attacks in Qatar and UAE have caused huge damage to energy production facilities. India has a long-term gas supply agreement with Qatar Energy’s Ras Laffan plant. Officials say that two processing units (trains) of LNG have been damaged here, due to which a huge decline of 17% has been recorded in its production capacity. Similarly, the functioning of UAE’s Habshan gas plant was also completely disrupted. Although 60% of the plant’s capacity has been restored, officials expect it to operate at 80% capacity by the end of 2026. It will take time till 2027 for it to be completely repaired. In such a situation, it may take time for the gas supply to become completely normal.
India’s heavy dependence on West Asia
From the point of view of Indian economy, keeping the Strait of Hormuz open is very important. Before this dispute started, India imported more than 88% of its total crude oil requirement. About half of it reached India only from West Asia. Along with this, more than 60% of the country’s imported LNG also came through this waterway. At the same time, 90% of the LPG coming from West Asia (which is 60% of the total imports) was imported through Hormuz only. Now that the situation is moving towards normalcy, the danger looming on the sea routes will reduce to a great extent. This safe return of the ships will prove helpful in keeping the wheels of the country’s industries running, which will strengthen the possibility of fuel prices remaining stable in the market.
