en.Wedoany.com Reported - The Russian government announced in a statement on Thursday that India will become the first official partner country of the Russian Energy Week international forum. The forum is scheduled to be held in Moscow from October 14 to 16, with Russia hoping to attract more Indian investment into its energy assets.
The Russian government statement quoted Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak as saying that Russia is interested in attracting Indian investment into its oil and gas sector and hopes to develop distribution networks in India involving Russian companies. Novak stated that bilateral relations are of a strategic partnership nature, with leaders of both countries maintaining continuous communication, and both sides are actively promoting mutually beneficial cooperation in oil and gas projects.
According to sources familiar with the matter, the Federation of Indian Petroleum Industry, representing India's Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, will attend the forum to showcase ongoing and planned projects between the two countries. Russian Energy Week is an international platform for discussing topics such as the development of the fuel and energy complex, interregional cooperation, and international energy relations.
Over the past 20 years, Indian capital has continuously entered Russia's energy sector. ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) invested $1.6 billion to acquire a 20% stake in the Sakhalin-1 oil and gas project; Oil India and public sector enterprises such as OVL invested $1 billion to purchase stakes in the Vankor cluster project owned by Rosneft; OVL also fully owns Imperial Energy Corporation, a London-listed company focused on operations in Siberia.
Russian capital has also established a presence in the Indian market. Rosneft holds a 49% stake in India's Nayara Energy, which operates the Vadinar refinery and exports processed fuel to countries including Russia.
Since 2022, India has been a major importer of Russian crude oil. In July 2026, India's daily crude oil imports from Russia reached a record 2.8 million barrels, accounting for approximately 55.5% of the country's total crude oil imports.
Energy cooperation between the two sides continues to expand. According to a May report by The Economic Times (ET), India and Russia are in negotiations to expand energy cooperation through natural gas supplies and joint ventures, including the development of oil and gas fields in India. Russia's Deputy Head of Mission in India, Roman Babushkin, said at an event in May that both sides are exploring opportunities to supply natural gas to Indian cities, expand compressed natural gas (CNG) refueling stations, and develop new oil, gas, and petrochemical facilities.
The Economic Times also reported that India is in negotiations with Russia to purchase liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). It was also reported that India is seeking to explore new oil and gas assets in eastern Russia.
In the civilian nuclear energy sector, Russia's Rosatom remains the only foreign partner to date building a nuclear power plant at Kudankulam.
