Russia offers new oil deal to India (&China)

On the sidelines of the Vladivostok meeting of the Indian, Russian and Chinese foreign ministers, Russia said it would permit its oil to reach India via Iran in return for major investments in Siberian oil fields.

Already, India has invested $2.5 billion in the Russian oil industry, taken a stake in the Sakhalin-2 project, and is keen to enter auctions for Sakhalin-3, but Russia wants investments between $12-14 billion for exploring new wells in Siberia.

At the 2-June Vladivostok meeting of Natwar Singh with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and their Chinese opposite number, Li Zhaoxing, all three focussed on energy cooperation and forming an international oil cartel to resist US and Western oil monopolies and stabilise prices, and it is here that discussions related to Siberian oil investments came up.

Russian contribution to the cartel would come by way of increasing domestic output and exploring new wells in Siberia, which is when Russia sought fresh investments, and tied it to supplying oil via Iran.

Significantly, Russia wants Indian investments more than Chinese, although China is keen to invest in Sakhalin-3, and diplomats said that Russian lawmakers want any Chinese investments to come last, if at all

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