KEY POINTS
- India is sourcing LPG from Nigeria, Algeria and Angola as Hormuz disruptions cut off up to 90 percent of its traditional LPG import routes
- NNPC Group CEO Bayo Ojulari says Nigeria can add 100,000 barrels per day to reach a target of 1.8 million bpd in 2026
- India imports 5.5 to 5.6 million barrels of crude daily, with 40 to 45 percent previously transiting through the Strait of Hormuz
India is knocking on Nigeria’s door more urgently than it has in years, and the reason is a crisis thousands of miles away in a narrow waterway it can no longer count on.
As tensions from the US-Israel conflict with Iran have tightened the Strait of Hormuz, the chokepoint through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s traded oil flows, India has been scrambling to replace supply from a region that has historically covered the bulk of its energy needs. West Africa, and Nigeria in particular, has emerged as one of the most accessible alternatives.
Nigeria is turning into a strategic energy import partner for India, which is accelerating efforts to diversify its sourcing base amid ongoing disruptions linked to the West Asia conflict. Officials from India’s Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas confirmed the country is now sourcing liquefied petroleum gas from the United States, Russia, Canada, Norway and West African nations, including Nigeria, Algeria and Angola. On the LNG side, discussions and shipments now involve Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea and Mozambique.
The numbers behind the scramble
India currently imports between 5.5 million and 5.6 million barrels of crude oil per day. Before the conflict, 40 to 45 percent of those imports were routed through the Strait of Hormuz. In the case of LPG, India meets nearly 60 percent of its annual demand of roughly 31 million tonnes through imports, with nearly 90 percent of those shipments previously transiting the same waterway.
The country’s natural gas consumption runs at about 191 million standard cubic meters per day, with 51 percent sourced from imports, of which around 60 percent originates from West Asia. As of mid-March, more than 1.6 million tonnes of crude, 320,000 tonnes of LPG and roughly 200,000 tonnes of LNG were stranded on Indian-flagged vessels awaiting Hormuz passage.
The government invoked the Essential Commodities Act to regulate and redistribute natural gas across sectors. Delivery timelines on domestic LPG cylinders temporarily stretched to four or five days due to panic buying, but officials said no actual shortage has occurred and conditions are expected to normalize. India holds about 25 days of crude oil supply in strategic petroleum reserves.
Nigeria’s opening
The moment comes as Nigeria’s state oil company NNPC is already in expansion mode. Speaking on the sidelines of CERAWeek in Houston, Group CEO Bayo Ojulari said Nigeria could add roughly 100,000 barrels per day to its output over the next few months. The country averaged 1.6 to 1.7 million bpd last year and is targeting 1.8 million bpd in 2026.
“We are building that capacity,” Ojulari said. “We are not like Saudi Arabia, but we can contribute.” His remarks were measured, acknowledging Nigeria’s structural headwinds. February output came in at around 1.46 million barrels per day, roughly 190,000 bpd below Nigeria’s OPEC quota of 1.5 million. Still, the directional signal is clear. At a moment when buyers are actively looking for Atlantic Basin supply that bypasses Hormuz entirely, Nigeria’s geography and production ambitions make it a credible option.
Why West Africa fits
Atlantic Basin supply from West Africa does not transit the Strait of Hormuz. That single geographic fact is now worth more commercially than it was six months ago.
India has been diversifying its crude sourcing since the Russia-Ukraine conflict reshaped global energy trade, with Russian discounted crude filling a significant share of the gap left by reduced Middle Eastern flows. The Hormuz crisis has reopened the diversification question from a different angle, this time pointing Indian procurement toward Africa.
Authorities said the combination of broadened sourcing, increased imports from Africa and active supply chain management has placed the country in a stronger position to manage its energy needs despite ongoing geopolitical uncertainty. That position, however, rests partly on Nigeria and its West African neighbors delivering supply that India can no longer easily secure through the Gulf.
