BackIran offers China-style strategic deal for India
An equivalent deal with India assumes significance given that India was among Iran’s top oil customers till the sanctions took effect
PremiumIran has offered India a strategic cooperation pact on the lines of a deal it signed with China in 2021, two people aware of the matter said, as the sanctions-hit country tries to attract investments in its energy and infrastructure sectors.
Details of the Iran-China deal have remained under wraps. However, according to reports in the international media last year, Beijing will invest close to $400 billion in Iran’s infrastructure and energy sector under a 25-year cooperation agreement. In return, Tehran will provide China with a steady supply of discounted Iranian oil. The deal was seen as a major expansion of Beijing’s footprint in West Asia and an effort by Iran to court non-Western sources for critical investments.
Iran has offered a similar deal to India to attract Indian investments and develop its transport and energy infrastructure, the people cited above said, adding that Ali Bagheri Kani, Iran’s deputy foreign minister confirmed the offer during an interaction with a group of experts during his visit to New Delhi last month.
Details of the proposed India-Iran pact are not yet clear. However, the matter is under consideration of the ministry of external affairs, sources said. The MEA did not respond to a query.
An equivalent deal with India assumes significance given that India was among Iran’s top oil customers till the sanctions took effect. A new compact with oil-rich Iran will help the world’s third largest oil consumer deal with high energy prices.
Iran has often reiterated its willingness to supply oil to India, and even assured New Delhi that it could help meet the country’s energy needs amid the volatility due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
State-run oil companies such as ONGC and Oil India were also jointly exploring oil and gas in the Gulf country. An Indian consortium discovered the Farzad-B gas field in the Persian Gulf. New Delhi has also played a role in building Iran’s infrastructure. Both sides agreed to continue cooperation in the development of the Shahid Behesti terminal of Chabahar port during Kani’s November visit. For Tehran, such a deal would help develop a rebalance with Asia after tensions over Iran’s nuclear programme with the US and its European allies led to the imposition of sanctions. With Western sources of investment off the table, Iran has been looking at powers like China, India and Russia.
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