Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri told the Rajya Sabha on Monday (9 February 2026) that India has so much petroleum reserves that the country can meet its oil needs for 74 days. He gave this information while answering the questions of the members during the question hour.

Puri said that India is a rapidly growing country and it is very important for such a country to have safe and strong oil reserves. He said that if there is any kind of turmoil in the world, like war, supply disruption or huge increase in prices, India will not be in a weak position.

Oil refinery system exists

Hardeep Singh Puri said that oil refinery systems are present on both the western and eastern coasts of India, due to which the country’s supply system remains strong. Citing International Energy Agency (IEA) data, Puri said that today India is the third largest consumer of crude oil in the world. Along with this, India also has the fourth largest oil refining capacity in the world. At present, India refines about 26 crore metric tons of crude oil annually, which will be increased to 32 crore metric tons per year in the future. Apart from this, India is also the world’s fifth largest exporter in terms of petroleum products.

Why was the petroleum reserve created?

Puri said that petroleum reserves have been created so that in case of any global crisis, the country’s oil needs can be met without any interruption. According to IEA, any country should have at least 90 days of oil reserves. He said that India estimates the total reserves by adding its strategic reserves as well as the oil present in the refineries. At present, overall India has oil reserves of 74 days. He admitted that ideally it should be 90 days, but at present he feels safe with the stock of 74 days. Consideration can also be given to increasing it further in future.

53.3 lakh metric tons of crude oil
Apart from this, the minister said in a written reply that the government has created oil reserves at three places in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka through Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited (ISPRL). Their total capacity is 53.3 lakh metric tons of crude oil. The quantity of oil in these reserves keeps increasing and decreasing according to the market conditions.

Israel Iran Tensions: Israel attacked Iran’s important nuclear installations. After this, tremendous tension has increased in the Middle East countries. It is believed that the way the tension between the two countries is increasing, it will not only affect West Asia but India will also not be untouched by it. The reason for this is the Gulf of Hormuz. It is between Iran and Oman. It connects the Gulf of Persia to the Arabian Sea and Oman’s Gulf. In addition, it is a sensitive and an important path.

Hormus Gulf of Gully Oil Supply

The bay of this hormus can also be gauged from the fact that about 20 percent of the global oil supply passes through this path. Along with this, this is the only sea route for the Middle East oil producing countries, such as Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and UAE, so that they transport oil to the world market.

In such a situation, if the problem arises here, then the price of oil will go to the seventh sky. The supply chain will stop and the energy needs of the countries including India depend on it will have a direct impact.

What is the effect on India

The most important thing is that it can become a big danger for India, because India does about two -thirds of oil rectangles through this path. Apart from this, about half of LNG is also imported through this route.

In such a situation, if this path is closed, then India will have to find other routes immediately, which will create more costs and logistics challenges. India now has the option to consider other sources of energy and increase its reserve in view of the possibilities of increasing costs, so that such challenges can be faced in the coming time.

Oil price is predicted to increase

Brokerage firm JP Morger warned that if the struggle increases, then in that case the price of oil can increase to $ 120. This can also increase inflation and the current fiscal deficit of India. Also, everything will become expensive by increasing the price of oil.

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India now seems to be more serious about its energy security. Till now, India was dependent on foreign tankers for supply of crude oil, but now preparations have been made to change this story. The government’s intention is that India should have its own oil tanker fleet, which also controls India and construction.

Why was there dependency on foreign tankers?

Till now, India’s government oil companies have been using tankers hired from most foreign companies. Many of these ships are also old and expensive. This not only makes logistics expensive, but also strategic control does not remain with India.

A big plan to buy 112 new tankers

Now the government is going to take a big step. India will buy a total of 112 new crude oil tankers. The scheme is about Rs 85,000 crore (about 10 billion dollars) and will be implemented by 2040. The project will start from the purchase of 79 ships, out of which 30 medium range will be carriers.

The first order may come this month

According to government sources, the first order can be released by the end of this month, which will include the purchase of 10 tankers. This will be the first episode of this long term scheme.

Big opportunity for ‘Make in India’

The special thing about this scheme is that these tankers will be constructed only in India. Even if it is partnership with a foreign company, the condition is that construction should be done in India itself. This will give a tremendous boost to the shipbuilding industry of the country and will also create local employment opportunities.

Why is India buying a tanker?

The world may be moving towards clean energy now, but India’s energy needs are growing fast. The demand for petroleum products in the country is continuously increasing, whether it is for domestic use or for export. This is the reason that India is working on a plan to increase its refining capacity from 250 million tonnes to 450 million tonnes by 2030.

The number of indigenous tankers will increase

Currently, only 5 percent of the oil tankers that India have, only 5 percent of the tankers remain in India. The government aims to reach 7 per cent by 2030 and to 69 per cent by 2047, which is associated with the vision of India becoming a developed nation.

Now new India will be built

This move of the government will not only give India logistic and strategic strength, but it will be a solid and big step towards the ‘self -sufficient India’ campaign. Now the oil will come from there, but the tanker and control will be completely native.

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