Ceramic City kilns go cold over fuel crisis: ‘Hippo’ cylinders run out, workers leave

But since the outbreak of the Iran war disrupted energy supply chains, most pottery manufacturers in Khurja have been unable to run their plants due to an impact on gas supply, and mounting fuel costs. Some workers have also started to leave.

India’s pottery ceramics market was valued at over $420 million in 2024, and is projected to grow to about $658 million by 2033, with Khurja at its core, according to a report by market intelligence firm Grand View Research. In Khurja, around 15% of the pottery production is exported, particularly to West Asian countries. Another ceramic heartland, in Gujarat’s Morbi, known for tile manufacturing, is also reeling under the same pressures. India is the world’s second-largest ceramic tile producer and consumer, holding more than 15% of global production.

Today, the main problem is fuel. Khurja’s ceramic kilns run on either piped natural gas, supplied here by Adani Gas, or on industrial LPG cylinders —the 422 kg behemoths locally known as “hippo cylinders”.

“Piped gas prices that hovered around Rs 49 per kg before the conflict began shot up to Rs 120 per kg at their peak, and remain elevated at around Rs 90 per kg right now,” said Alok Garg of Alok Industries, a small pottery making firm, that did about Rs 30-40 lakh worth of business in a month before the war broke out. That price is nearly double what manufacturers were paying before the West Asia conflict broke out.

At the height of the disruption, supplies of the 422-kg cylinders largely dried up as the Government prioritised LPG availability for household cooking needs. Without access to these cylinders, many ceramic units lost their only fallback option. As a result, furnaces across Khurja’s industrial area have remained idle for weeks, bringing production to a near standstill.

“We have been impacted since the beginning of the war, because of these soaring gas prices and the unavailability of hippo cylinders. Since the last few days, there has been some supply of the cylinders, but it is not enough to keep up production at the same level as it was before the war,” said Virendra Bansal, owner of Bansal Pottery at the Khurja Industrial complex.

The Adani Group did not respond to a request from The Indian Express for a comment.

Varun Garg, the son of Alok Industries’ Alok Garg, explains how intensive furnace operations are, and how even small fuel disruptions disrupt production. “Our kilns need to be heated for 12 hours at a stretch so that they reach the desired temperature for baking the pottery. Even if the connection is cut for a few minutes, the oven loses its temperature rapidly, and the entire process has to be restarted,” he said.

Manufacturers say fresh domestic orders have largely dried up, while exports to the Gulf, until recently a key market, have slowed as shipping lines remain constrained. For now, many factories are completing orders placed months earlier, when fuel costs were far lower. That backlog may last another month. Beyond that, any new orders will almost certainly come at higher prices, manufacturers say.

Many manufacturers are moving to set up new pipelines and storage facilities to power their furnaces using industrial diesel — allowed on a temporary basis by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) in view of the shortage. But, due to this diesel power, manufacturers say, Khurja’s pottery would lose its shine, quite literally.

“Pottery that is baked in kilns powered by diesel has very little shine compared to the ones baked in furnaces that run on gas. So, the quality is going to take a big hit. The paintwork also suffers in diesel kilns, as there are a lot of web-like patterns on the paint, resulting in a lot more wastage,” said Sabir Khan of SS Ceramic.

The uncertainty has begun to impact the workforce that powers Khurja’s ceramic economy. In several factories across Khurja, owners say workers who had travelled home for festivals have not returned.

“The units have not been running since Holi,” said Ram Kishore, a resident of Etawah and a worker at Alok Industries. “It has been only two days since we got back to work after the supply of some LPG. If this continues, why will the owner pay us?”

Some had left around Holi and Eid al-Fitr, but with kilns still cold and shifts irregular, many appear to be staying back. “We understand their situation,” Bansal said. “At least in the village they can manage. They can cook on firewood, find some work locally. Here, if the furnace is not running, there is nothing for them to do. And the bigger worry for them is food at their dorms, because many are afraid that they may not be able to get fuel to cook, and they can’t afford to buy cylinders at double the rate in the black market.”

Then there are the elections. A large share of Khurja’s pottery workforce comes from the east, particularly West Bengal. With the state barely two weeks away from the Assembly polls, factory owners expect many more workers to travel back to cast their votes. “If the factories are still running like this, some of them may decide to stay back,” Garg said. “That is our fear.”