India to sign hydrocarbon pact with Cuba

NEW DELHI: India will sign an agreement with Cuba for cooperation in the oil and gas sector, an official statement said here on Tuesday.

India will also look at investment opportunities in new refinery projects in the Latin American country.

The two countries have finalised the 'India Cuba Hydrocarbon Agreement', which would be signed by Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Murli Deora during his visit to Cuba, coinciding with spudding of oil wells by ONGC Videsh in its exploration block in the country, the statement said.

OVL has acquired interests in nine exploration blocks in Cuba. The contracts for these blocks were signed in 2006.

During his meeting with Cuban Minister of Basic Industry Yadira Garcia Vera in Spain, Deora said Indian firms are keen to participate in upstream as well as downstream projects in Cuba. The two ministers are currently in Madrid for the 19th World Petroleum Congress.

Vera invited Indian companies to invest in the new refinery project coming up on the west coast of Cuba, with a capacity of 150 thousand barrels a day (7.5 million tons per annum). Indian firms can also participate in capacity expansion and upgradation of existing refineries, the statement said.

Expressing interest in the projects, the Indian delegation said companies have set up refineries which produce environment-friendly fuels of Euro-III and Euro-IV standards. Besides domestic markets, these products cater to export markets including the US and Europe, it added.