UNI, Dubai, March 27: India’s ties with Saudi Arabia are set to scale new heights through enhanced bilateral investments and intensified energy cooperation between New Delhi and Riyadh, the Petroleum Minister, Mr Mani Shankar Aiyar has said.
Mr Aiyar, who begins a three-day landmark visit to the kingdom tomorrow, said the world’s largest oil producer has come to recognise India as a significant power and begun to take New Delhi seriously.
In an interview to Arab News, the first Indian Petroleum Minister to visit the kingdom, said that the Indo-Saudi ties would touch a new high in the coming days when Crown Prince Abdullah comes on a visit to India, the dates of which are yet to be finalised.
Saudi Arabia meets 25 per cent of India’s crude petroleum requirements and the bulk of its petroleum products. The kingdom is looking for investment opportunities as well.
Mr Aiyar is proposing a long-term strategic energy plan to the Saudi officials that calls for import of refined petroleum rather than crude.
This is expected to boost Saudi and Indian investments in both countries and bring stable market equilibrium, he said.
