UAE assures additional LPG supplies to meet free LPG demand of India

NEW DELHI: The UAE has assured India of additional cooking gas supplies to meet its free Ujjwala refill requirement over the next three months after Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan spoke to the UAE energy minister via a videoconference on Tuesday.
Pradhan and Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, the UAE minister and ADNOC group CEO, discussed the emerging oil and gas outlook and agreed to work together within the framework of the strategic partnership between the two countries to mitigate the challenges arising out of the Covid-19 pandemic in the energy sector, an official statement said.

“At my request, Dr Jaber assured me of additional LPG supplies from Adnoc Group to meet free supply of three LPG refills during April-June period to over 8 crore Ujjwala (PMUY) beneficiaries as part of the economic package announced by the Government. Have assured of full support in sourcing of crude oil from Adnoc Group for India’s strategic petroleum reserves,” Pradhan said.

The two leaders agreed to work closely in the coming days to strengthen India’s energy security, including its strategic petroleum reserves program, where ADNOC is already a partner.

“Our comprehensive strategic partnership with the UAE has grown from strength to strength under the leadership of Hon. PM Shri Narendra Modi and HRH Sheikh Zayed Al Nahyan”, Pradhan added.

Last week, Saudi Arabia had assured India of additional cooking gas supplies after Pradhan sought support from the world's biggest oil exporter. Cooking gas demand has risen in India following a lockdown.