New Delhi: India faces a supply gap of about 400,000 barrels of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) per day, reports Nikkei Asia. It writes that domestic production is “unable to make up for the fall in imports caused by the Iran war.”According to the news report citing data from analytics company Kpler, only 377,620 LPG barrels per day came through in April, which is less than half of the average of 851,870 barrels imported per day in February. The Strait of Hormuz has been severely restricted, if not closed after the attack on Iran by the United States and Israel on February 28. Domestic production grew, but only by 75,000 barrels per day.The supply gap might persist for as long as imports don’t fully resume, Sumit Ritolia, lead analyst for refining and supply at Kpler told Nikkei, saying that domestic supply had peaked and was unable to rise further.India increased the price of regular household LPG cylinders by Rs 60 in March. India does not stock long-term strategic reserves of LPG. Minister Hardeep Puri told CII’s Annual Business Summit last week that there was “no crisis” and India had LPG which could last “45 days”, alongside crude oil and natural gas stocks each of which could last for 69 days.Also read: ‘Don’t Panic,’ Commerce Minister Tells Businesses; Credit Agencies Lower GDP Growth EstimateIndia imports two-thirds of its total LPG needs and 80% of this comes via the Strait of Hormuz. Nikkei reports that India’s difficulties may not end with the Strait of Hormuz miraculously opening, as United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, which together provide about 80% of India’s imports, “have suffered strikes on energy infrastructure, some of which may take years to repair.” India’s LPG imports from the four countries dropped to 173,000 barrels per day in April, down about 75% from February levels.India has tried to diversify its sources of LPG and bought it from Iran, Australia, Argentina and Chile. But while these four countries accounted for 43,000 barrels of LPG per day last month, which is significantly less than the 678,000 barrels per day dispatched by the four mainstay West Asian suppliers in February. Also read: Austerity Appeals for Whom? A Delayed Response to a Brewing CrisisLPG supplies from Australia take about 20 days to reach India, Ritolia told Nikkei, and journeys from Argentina and the United States “can take from 35 days to 45 days.” Imports from West Asia through Hormuz took five to six days.The government has also tried to move people to piped gas, which is extracted from natural gas. In March, India added over half a million new piped gas connections, but piped gas services just 16 million households. LPG is used in 330 million homes.The crisis has also led to soaring grey and black market prices for LPG, with another steep price hike of Rs 993 effected earlier this month.