Adani Group has rejected claims of wrongdoing following a report that the United States Department of Justice is investigating whether any of its entities played a role in the importation of Iranian liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) into India, a trade restricted under American sanctions.
According to The Wall Street Journal, US prosecutors are examining whether shipments to Adani’s Mundra port included LPG sourced from Iran.
The report cited maritime tracking experts who pointed to vessel movements between the Persian Gulf and Mundra that bore hallmarks of sanctions evasion.
Responding to the allegations, a spokesperson for the conglomerate described the claims as “baseless and mischievous”, and added, “We are not aware of any investigation by US authorities on this subject.”
The group issued a categorical denial, stating, “Adani categorically denies any deliberate engagement in sanctions evasion or trade involving Iranian-origin LPG.” It further stressed that “we do not handle, and have never handled, any cargo from Iran at our ports.”
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In its defence, Adani noted that the company’s LPG trade is minimal, accounting for just 1.46 per cent of Adani Enterprises’ overall revenue, and operates entirely within the bounds of both domestic and international regulations, including US sanctions laws.
Referring specifically to one shipment highlighted in the Wall Street Journal article, Adani clarified that the consignment had been arranged through “routine commercial transaction” channels by independent logistics providers.
The associated documentation, it said, listed Sohar, Oman, as the shipment’s port of origin.
The US inquiry arrives at a fraught moment for the conglomerate, which has been under intensifying legal scrutiny abroad.
In November last year, US authorities indicted Gautam Adani and his nephew, Sagar Adani, accusing them of bribing officials to secure power contracts and of misleading American investors during capital-raising efforts.
The group denied those charges and vowed to defend itself through legal channels.
The latest controversy unfolds against the backdrop of Washington’s enduring hard line on Iranian energy exports.
Just last month, former US President Donald Trump reaffirmed that “anyone buying oil or petrochemical products from Iran would be subject to immediate secondary sanctions.”
While the DOJ has not confirmed any ongoing probe, the mere suggestion of involvement in sanctioned trade threatens to add to the reputational challenges already facing one of India’s most high-profile business empires.
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