India has signed a big and historic agreement with America. Under this agreement, Indian oil companies will import at least 10% of their LPG requirement from the US. Giving information about this agreement, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said that the government has made this important agreement to diversify LPG sources. He further said that with this the people of the country will continue to get cheap gas cylinders. Under this agreement, it will be mandatory for public sector oil companies to import LPG from the US Gulf Coast in the contract year 2026. This is the first structured LPG contract with the US for the Indian market.
Puri said that LPG will be imported under Mount Belview standard. A team of top officials from BPCL, IOC and HPCL also visited the US and held talks with oil producing companies there before the agreement. He said that despite the surge in international oil prices, Indian companies are committed to providing LPG to the public at affordable prices.
What did the government say about cheap cylinders?
Hardeep Singh Puri said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Indian oil companies are providing cylinders under the Ujjwala scheme for only ₹500 and ₹550, which is much lower than international prices. He further said that the government spends at least ₹40,000 crore to provide affordable cylinders to mothers and sisters.
There may be a trade deal soon
This agreement between India and America is also important because economic tension between the two countries has increased since Donald Trump’s government came to power. Donald Trump had imposed a huge tariff of 50 percent on India. Now, both the countries are moving positively towards a trade agreement. After the trade deal, Donald Trump is expected to remove the additional 25 percent tariffs. America was especially angry with India’s oil imports from Russia. However, now India wants to maintain this balance by importing energy from the US. India never said that it would stop importing oil from Russia, yet Trump’s stance now seems to be softening.