hapelinium/Shutterstock Save for later Print Download Share India is making a renewed push to attract Mideast players to invest in the country's booming energy sector after previous efforts fell apart. The Mideast, primarily Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, accounted for 45% of India鈥檚 4.7 million barrels per day of imported crude last year, per ship tracker Kpler. But foreign investment in India's oil sector, particularly its downstream, has been scarce to date. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in Riyadh this week to make the case that investing in India could be mutually beneficial to his country and to its largest energy suppliers. "As strategic partners, we agree that our energy cooperation is not limited to mere buyer-seller relationships," Modi said Tuesday in Riyadh. "We are also exploring joint projects in refineries and petrochemicals." He added that he has secured from Riyadh an understanding to "collaborate on establishing two refineries in India." Modi said he would also welcome any Saudi investments in emerging sectors like green hydrogen and renewables. Saudi Arabia is India鈥檚 third-biggest crude oil supplier, a seller of LPG and the South Asian nation鈥檚 fifth-biggest trade partner.
