India Weighs Investing Up to $20 Billion in Iran Energy Industry

India may invest as much as $20 billion in Iran’s energy industry and ports and boost imports of crude from the Persian Gulf nation if it gets favorable terms, India’s Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said in an interview.

Indian companies are evaluating opportunities to explore for oil and natural gas, build petrochemical plants and gas-processing facilities and expand ports including the new industrial hub of Chabahar, Pradhan said during a visit to Tehran. The two countries agreed to plan for development of Iran’s Farzad-B gas field, with the aim of deciding whether to award a contract to an Indian group by October, according to a copy of the memorandum signed by the ministers and posted on Pradhan’s Twitter account.

“We were importing a good amount of oil from Iran in the challenging days, so we will continue to import that amount,” Pradhan said Saturday. “That’s a business level discussion regarding my companies — if they will be getting good terms they may increase their import.” India is buying about 350,000 barrels of Iranian crude a day, Iran’s oil minister, Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, said after meeting Pradhan, according to the ministry’s news service Shana. Read More…