How New Delhi is working to fix the Hormuz headache

India is activating an emergency playbook to safeguard its oil supplies, as a fragile truce prevails in West Asia after 10 days of conflict.

- Utpal Bhaskar & Rituraj Baruah

The strategy involves bypassing the critical Strait of Hormuz in Iranian waters via two pipelines; tapping into the global reserves and portfolios of Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (Adnoc) and Saudi Arabian Oil Co. (Saudi Aramco); and significantly increasing imports from the U.S.

The two pipelines, which run east to west across the Arabian peninsula, may be tapped if Iran closes the Strait, a choke point vital for global energy supplies. The first is Adnoc-operated 360-km Habshan-Fujairah strategic oil pipeline with a 1.5 million barrels per day (mbpd) capacity that opens to the Gulf of Oman; and the Saudi Aramco-operated 1,200-km East-West crude oil pipeline with a 5 mbpd capacity that offers access to the Red Sea.

State-run refiners Indian Oil Corp. (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Ltd (HPCL) are in touch with suppliers Adnoc and Saudi Aramco to use the pipeline route in case of an emergency, the people cited above said on the condition of anonymity.

The shaky ceasefire between Israel and Iran is keeping markets on edge, even as Indian officials express confidence in securing supplies, albeit with potential pricing shifts. After U.S. President Donald Trump declared a ceasefire, Israel accused Iran of breaking it, a claim denied by the latter.