BENGALURU: India has offered the United Arab Emirates (UAE) stakes in petrochemical plants and refinery projects as it seeks to boost energy ties with the cash-rich Gulf nation.
Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, while on a two-day visit to UAE, promised "fair, transparent and attractive" policy regime for investing in oil and gas sector in India through "appropriate policy, regulatory and fiscal interventions".
Addressing industry captains in Dubai, he showcased investment opportunities for UAE, which had in August last year committed to invest $75 billion in India.
On offer was a 26% stake, for $700 million, in state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp's about to be commissioned petrochemical project at Dahej in Gujarat.
Besides, there was 24% equity available, for $200 million, in expansion being planned by Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd of its subsidiary Bina refinery in Madhya Pradesh, from 6 million tonnes to 7.5 million tonnes.
Also, an investment of $530-850 million can get the UAE a 25-40% stake in Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited's planned petrochemical plant on the Andhra coast, he said, adding that the Gulf nation can also invest in the planned 60 million tonnes facility in Maharashtra and the Jagdishpur-Haldia and Paradip-Surat gas pipelines.
"UEA makes up for 8% of our oil imports. We are trying to import more oil from UAE. In 2016-17, we plan to import 2.5 million tonnes more oil than 2015-16's purchase of 16.11 million tonnes," he said.
An official statement said that the minister called for greater economic and strategic ties between India and UAE in his meeting with business leaders.
"India-UAE trade has increased phenomenally in the last half a century. The trade, valued at $180 million per annum in the 1970s, is today around $60 billion making UAE, India's third largest trading partner since 2014-15," the statement quoted him as saying.
There is an estimated $8 billion UAE investment in India of which around $3.13 billion is in the form of foreign direct investment, while the remaining is portfolio investment and UAE is the eleventh biggest investor in India in terms of foreign direct investment (FDI).
Pradhan said that India genuinely believes that there is potential to transform the buyer-seller relationship with UAE in energy into a genuine energy partnership.
India has allowed 100% FDI in oil and gas exploration and production, refining, pipelines and fuel marketing.
Also, the government last month announced the Hydrocarbon Exploration Licensing Policy (HELP) to streamline the award of hydrocarbon acreages under a new fiscal and contractual regime.
Highlighting the major points in HELP, he said that companies can now explore and produce conventional oil and gas as well as un-conventional hydrocarbon such as CBM and shale under a single license.
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