India to amp up energy diplomacy; Petroleum minister Puri to visit US, UAE

New Delhi: Union petroleum and natural gas minister Hardeep Singh Puri is set to visit the US and UAE in the coming months for key energy events in a bid to push India's energy diplomacy, diversify energy sources, and secure long-term oil and gas contracts.

Two people in the know of the developments said Puri in the first instance will attend Gastech 2024 in Houston where he will hold talks with US energy giants.

Set to gain momentum

"Energy diplomacy efforts would gain momentum now with the minister set to visit New York and Houston next month. In Houston he would attend Gastech. He would also then visit the UAE for Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference (ADIPEC) in November," said one of the two people mentioned above.

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India is making efforts to expand domestic areas for oil and gas production and increase output in a bid to cut imports. India has invited global E&P majors to take part in its efforts to increase energy production.

Investment opportunities

Addressing an event here in June, the minister said: "The exploration and production (E&P) sector offers investment opportunities worth $100 billion by 2030." He highlighted the potential of India’s 26 sedimentary basins, containing substantial reserves of crude oil and natural gas that are yet to be fully tapped.

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US companies ExxonMobil and Chevron already have partnerships with Indian state-run ONGC to explore E&P opportunities. In 2022 ONGC signed a deal with ExxonMobil for deep-sea exploration in India. In the same year, the Maharatna company also tied up with Chevron New Ventures PTE Ltd, a subsidiary of California-based Chevron Corp., to assess the exploration potential in India.

The minister is also likely to attend ADIPEC 2024 which is scheduled for 4-7 November.

"The minister has been a regular at events like Gastech and ADIPEC. This year too he is expected to attend ADIPEC. However, the visit is yet to be finalized," said another person

For long-term contracts

India has been looking at tying up with global oil and gas suppliers for long-term contracts for both oil and gas to ensure energy security.

Energy prices surged to all-time highs in 2022 amid the height of Russia-Ukraine war, and Russia's Gazprom defaulted on its contract for supply of gas to GAIL, prompting India to make efforts to diversify its import sources, sign long-term contracts and look for sweeter deals.

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In July, Mint reported that state-run Indian Oil Corp. Ltd (IOCL), Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Ltd (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd (BPCL) are in talks with Brazilian energy major Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) to secure guaranteed crude oil supplies over the long term.

India is the third largest importer of oil and gas and imports about 85% of its energy requirement. In FY24, it imported 233.1 million metric tonne (mmt) of crude oil, compared to 232.7 mmt in the previous fiscal (FY23). India's LNG imports in FY24 were 31,795 million metric standard cubic metre (mmscm), 17.5% higher than 26,304 mmscm in the previous fiscal.

Queries sent to the ministry of petroleum remained unanswered till press time.