For Suresh Kumar, the ongoing commercial LPG shortage in Chennai could soon spill over from industrial supply chains to his own kitchen. The 38-year-old finance executive at an automobile plant in Oragadam begins his day before sunrise commuting for two hours from the southern suburb to the industrial hub on the outskirts of the city.
Like many workers at the plant, he depends on the factory cafeteria for breakfast and lunch. If cooking gas supplies tighten further, Kumar says his family may have to wake up much earlier to prepare his meals at home.
“I need to catch the 6 am bus to reach the plant by 8 am. If I ask my mother or wife to cook for me, they will have to wake up even earlier,” he said.
Kumar is among thousands of workers who travel daily to Oragadam in Kancheepuram district, about 45 km from Chennai. The cluster is one of India’s largest automotive manufacturing hubs, housing major companies like Renault, Daimler India Commercial Vehicles, Yamaha Motor India and Royal Enfield, along with hundreds of auto component manufacturers including JBM Group, Bosch, Apollo Tyres and Valeo. The ecosystem also includes electronics, defence, renewable energy and third-party logistics companies.
While manufacturers are assessing the direct impact of the natural gas shortage on production and raw material supply, another immediate concern is far more basic: how to feed tens of thousands of factory workers.
Human Impact
“Most auto firms and component manufacturers have a very large workforce and run canteens for their staff. If there is no fuel, how can they run these canteens,” asks Vinnie Mehta, director general of the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA).
The scale of the challenge is significant. For instance, Renault’s plant in Oragadam, which it recently took over fully after restructuring the Renault-Nissan alliance manufacturing arrangement, employs over 6,300 people, including 4,958 permanent and contract workers and about 1,695 temporary staff. Daimler India Commercial Vehicles employs close to 4,000 workers at its nearby facility, while Yamaha Motor India, Apollo Tyres and Royal Enfield together employ several thousand more in the cluster.
For many workers, access to subsidised meals at factory canteens is an important incentive. “For many of these workers, this food is an incentive to come to the factory because of their background. That’s another human angle to it,” Mehta said.
Managing the Shortage
Some companies say they currently have enough gas to run operations for a few weeks but are quietly preparing contingency plans. “We have adequate gas supply for canteens for at least the next three weeks. If the situation extends beyond March, we may have to take some measures,” said an official at an automobile manufacturer employing more than 5,000 people in the region.
Among the options being considered are work-from-home arrangements for employees in non-production roles such as HR, finance and administration, while prioritising gas supplies for production line workers. The official also flagged another concern around fuel availability for transporting workers from across the city to the industrial clusters. The officials requested anonymity as the contingency plans are still under discussion and may not be needed if the supply situation improves.
Tyre major MRF has also warned that food supply in factory canteens could become a challenge if the disruption continues. “Even food in plant canteens may become a concern,” said Arun Mammen, vice chairman and managing director of MRF. The Chennai-based company had 26,217 workers and 6,899 employees on its roaster as of March 2025 across nine plants, including its facility in Tiruvottiyur near Chennai as well as factories in Kerala, Goa and Puducherry.
About 50 km from Oragadam, companies in the SIPCOT Sriperumbudur industrial cluster, one of India’s largest electronics manufacturing hubs, say the situation is stable for now.
The cluster hosts large manufacturing facilities of global companies such as Taiwanese contract manufacturer Foxconn, Samsung, Dell and Nokia, supported by an extensive network of component suppliers serving both domestic and export markets.
“There is absolutely no gas short supply for canteens. Things are normal and we have enough supply for the next two weeks,” an employee of a large electronics firm said. According to them, city gas distributor THINK Gas supplies gas to the Sriperumbudur Industrial Park and SEZ.
Vinukumar Balakrishnan, chief marketing & commercial officer, THINK Gas said the immediate priority remains ensuring uninterrupted supply to Households & Essential Services (PNG) consumers and to the transport sector (CNG). “For industrial and commercial customers, gas offtake will be moderated up to 80% from their usual volumes as a precautionary measure until the situation stabilises.”
Companies in the Sriperumbudur cluster also have some backup options such as electric heating systems and steam boilers. “If the gas shortage intensifies, we may reduce the canteen menu,” the person said. For now, workers like Kumar are hoping the disruption eases soon before it hits their early-morning routines.