Press Statement by Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, MoS (I/C), P&NG

New Delhi: Following is the statement of the Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Petroleum and Natural Gas regarding India-Russia cooperation in the oil and gas sector: “India and Russia have strong and historical cooperation in the oil and gas sector. This cooperation, which dates back to Russia’s involvement in ONGC’s Bombay High asset in 1970s and India’s investment in Sakhalin in the 1990s, has now been further strengthened in the last two years. ONGC Videsh Limited acquired 15% stake in Vankor in May this year. A consortium comprising Oil India Limited, Indian Oil Corporation Limited and Bharat Petro Resources Limited is in the process of acquiring an additional stake of 23.9% in Vankor and 29.9% in Tass-suyarkh. It is a high priority for the Indian Government to encourage two way investments. We welcome Russian companies to invest in the rapidly growing Indian oil and gas sector in India including upstream, midstream and downstream sectors.”