Russia–India Business Dialogue

2 September 2021

Russia–India Business Dialogue

CONCLUSIONS

Russia and India want to continue to develop economic cooperation, with mutual consideration of the various paths to growth

“Indian companies have already invested almost USD 16 billion in Russia’s oil and gas sector. Russian companies have invested in India in the same fashion, perhaps a little less, but around the same figure... We want to expand and intensify our cooperation,” Minister of Oil and Natural Gas of the Republic of India Sri Hardip Singh Puri.

“For many years, India and Russia have not only been strategic partners, but also countries that share the same energy doctrine,” Deputy General Director for Project Engineering and International Cooperation at RusHydro Sergey Machekhin.

“We advocate a balanced approach to the use of traditional and renewable energy sources. I believe that this position is supported by our partners in India, among others. The ‘green’ agenda is being discussed at the highest level, and hydrogen production is becoming a long-term policy priority. We support this drive and are willing to cooperate in all areas,” Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation Nikolay Shulginov.

Indian companies are interested in implementing new projects in the Far East

“We are enthusiastic about the opportunities we are seeing in the Far East. This is a region on the radar of India's business community and our investors. We see a wide range of opportunities that the region can offer us… These include projects to modernize airports, freight terminals and international airports. Agriculture is another attractive area we are looking at,” President of FICCI Uday Shankar.

“India is keen to be involved in Russia’s priority areas of development. The Russian Far East and Arctic are very important areas, priority areas with huge potential. Coaking coal is mined in the region and shipped for steel production in India. The steel industry is one of our fastest growing industries, and we need a good supply of coking coal in order to stay competitive. Russia has a role to play in this,” Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Indian Republic in the Russian Federation Venkatesh Varma Datla Bala.

PROBLEMS

Trade links between India and Russia are well established, but volumes need to increase

“Levels of trade and trade volumes between the countries are currently very low, including in the fuel and energy sector. What exists today represents a fraction of the total demand of a country like India, and this isn’t enough. We must therefore step up our cooperation, establishing relations between companies, and focusing not so much on the signing of declarations and agreements as the development of specific projects,” Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation Nikolay Shulginov.

“USD 16 billion in investments between the two countries [has been committed to date], but this still represents an insignificant share [of the supply] of liquid hydrocarbons from Russia to India. I’m looking at this through the lens of investments and cooperation, which need to increase. The figure for gas is also low, and that should be higher too. This is what our companies need to work on,” Minister of Oil and Natural Gas of the Republic of India Sri Hardip Singh Puri.

“Investments should be balanced for both our nations. We are investing in production, extraction and processing, so investments should be allocated rationally to both production and processing. This provides stability in the context [of relations] between our countries,” Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of ONGC Videsh Limited Alok Kumar Gupta.

A transport corridor between Russia and India should be created and be able to function seamlessly in order to increase trade volumes between the two countries

“The implementation of the eastern branch project, with the Baikal–Amur Mainline and the Trans-Siberian Railway, is playing a decisive role in increasing the volumes of coking coal being shipped to India. This is because the coal industry, Kuzbassrazrezugol, and the port sector are now able to move higher volumes,” Chief Officer for Seaport and Railway Projects at UMMC Irina Olkhovskaya.

“Russia can produce colossal volumes of liquefied natural gas. This is an excellent market for imports: the current figure is 1% or 1 million tonnes, and this will rise to 14%, representing 8 million tonnes of gas. The existing contracts for 16 million will rise to 40 million in the near future, so a significant share of these 20 million tonnes will go through the eastern sea corridor. This will account for 60% of all supplies by 2025,” Chairman of Chennai Port Trust Shri P. Ravendran.

“The key issue affecting us and impacting trade between Russia and India is logistics. I am glad that there is a corridor between China and Vladivostok, but a north–south corridor could be of great help to us in terms of strengthening trade and business links,” Non-Executive Chairman of Murugappa Group M. M. Murugappan.

SOLUTIONS

India intends to participate in Russian mining projects, while Russia is keen to develop India's hydropower potential

“The most interesting projects taking place in Russia that we are hoping to participate in are also among the largest. I am talking about mining. These are colossal projects that require serious research in Russia, including feasibility studies. Both parties are now working at the highest level of cooperation,” Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of ONGC Videsh Limited Alok Kumar Gupta.

“Diamonds are an area where we can collaborate and continue to develop our relationship. Tourism and education are other areas,” Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Indian Republic in the Russian Federation Venkatesh Varma Datla Bala.

“We have a significant portfolio of orders in India, which we are fulfilling through the construction of new hydropower stations. The installed capacity of the new projects is over 12,000 MW, a significant boost in capacity for any country. India's potential is not highly developed at present, so we have something to aim for,” Deputy General Director for Project Engineering and International Cooperation at RusHydro Sergey Machekhin.

Russia and India have great potential for close relations in the hydrogen energy sector

“One factor bringing us together is the mission to decarbonize the world and reduce CO2 emissions. The best way of achieving this is switching to clean energy. Clean energy isn’t just an option, it’s a necessity if we want to meet our climate change targets… Hydrogen will play an increasingly important role in the economy’s future,” Chairman and Managing Director of GAIL (India) Limited Shri Manoj Jain.

“As soon as we learn how to safety transport hydrogen over long distances, we will be able to transform the planet’s entire energy landscape. Both Russia and India have significant water resources, and hydropower is developing at a rapid pace in India today. The easiest way of obtaining hydrogen is by extracting it from existing reservoirs in India and Russia, which provides an excellent reason to switch technologies and strengthen our ties,” Deputy General Director for Project Engineering and International Cooperation at RusHydro Sergey Machekhin.

For more information, visit the Roscongress Foundation's Information and Analytical System at roscongress.org.

Russia–India Business Dialogue

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