Russia seeks Indian investment in its oil and gas sector

Pump jacks are seen at the Ashalchinskoye oilfield owned by Russian oil producer Tatneft near Almetyevsk in the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia July 27, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin/File Photo

NEW DELHI, March 12 (Reuters) – Russia has urged India to deepen its investment in the sanctions-hit country’s oil and gas sector and wants to expand sales channels for Russian companies in Asia’s third-largest economy.

Russia’s economy faces its deepest crisis since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, as the West imposes harsh sanctions following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Some Western allies have encouraged India to condemn Russia’s actions in Ukraine, after New Delhi abstained from voting against Moscow, a longtime arms supplier, at the United Nations. Read more

“Russia’s oil and petroleum product exports to India have approached $1 billion, and there are clear opportunities to increase this figure,” Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said in a statement. shared by the Russian Embassy in India on Friday evening.

“We want to attract more Indian investment in the Russian oil and gas sector and expand the sales networks of Russian companies in India,” Novak told India’s Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.

The United States this week banned imports of Russian oil and Britain said it would phase them out by the end of the year, moves that are expected to further disrupt the global energy market, where Russia is the second largest exporter of crude. Read more

Indian state-owned companies hold stakes in Russian oil and gas fields, while Russian entities including Rosneft hold a majority stake in Indian refiner Nayara Energy. Some Indian companies also buy Russian oil.

Russia expects the two countries to continue cooperation on civilian nuclear energy, including the construction of new units at a nuclear power plant in the southern Indian city of Kudankulam, Novak said.

Reporting by Nidhi Verma; Written by Devjyot Ghoshal; Editing by William Mallard

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