New Delhi, Jan 25 (IANS) India has asked Sudan to increase the acreage of petroleum exploration and offered help in building up the downstream sector of the North African sector.
This was stated by visiting Indian minister for petroleum and natural gas Murli Deora to his Sudanese counterpart, minister for energy and mining Ahmed Al Jazz in Khartoum, where he arrived Sunday for the first part of his four-nation African tour. He will be travelling next to Nigeria, and then to Angola and Uganda.

A press release issued here said the minister stressed that Indian companies were keen to participate in more exploration and production acreages in Sudan. “OVL (ONGC Videsh Ltd), which has interest in four blocks in Sudan that give it 2.4 million tonnes of crude oil annually, wants to consolidate its operations and acquire more acreage in the African country,” it added.

The minister also offered Indian expertise in refinery upgradation and management.

Besides, he suggested training slots for Sudanese students in the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology.

Deora also raised the issue of payments to ONGC Videsh for pipeline construction. “The two Ministers agreed to form a joint working group for resolving the issues within a month in respect of a 741-km pipeline from Khartoum to Port au Sudan,” said the press release.

The minister’s visit to Africa comes after the India-Africa hydrocarbon conference, where a memorandum of understanding was signed between India and Sudan on oil and gas cooperation.