India need not fear oil shortage: UAE envoy
New Delhi, July 18 : Even as the US-imposed sanctions on Iran has put India's energy security in jeopardy, UAE Ambassador to India Ahmed Albanna has allayed fears of an oil shortage, saying his country as well as Saudi Arabia can fill in if supply from Iran is disrupted.
"In the international market, the law of demand and supply controls the prices," Albanna told IANS here in an exclusive interview when asked about rising fuel prices in India.
"Production is the important element there... to ensure that the production is enough for the world consumption of oil," he said.
He said that consumer countries have been faced with most of the problems because of challenges faced by some Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) countries as also non-OPEC countries.
However, at the same time, he said that India need not fear shortage of oil with the new US sanctions on Iran set to take effect in November this year. Iran is the second-largest supplier of crude oil to India, supplying more than 425,000 barrels of oil per day, and India is one of the biggest foreign investors in Iran's oil and gas industry.
"There was some disruption during the embargo against Iran years ago," Albanna said.
"Saudi Arabia was able to rectify the matter and supply India in the face of the shortage that took place because of the embargo," he said.
"The same thing will happen this time I guess in November, when the embargo takes place."
The Ambassador said that because India enjoys a "great relationship" with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia and Iraq, "the alternatives are there all the time".
Regarding energy giants Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) and Saudi Aramco jointly investing in the development of the $44-billion Ratnagiri refinery and petrochemicals complex in Maharashtra, Albanna said that it is a "strategic project" with a trilateral arrangement.
"Due to the close and strategic relationship between the UAE and Saudi Arabia and between India and both UAE and Saudi Arabia, we have been able to reach such an agreement," he said. "It will be beneficial to all parties."
Earlier this year, the first consignment of two million barrels of crude oil from the UAE for India's strategic petroleum reserve in Karnataka's Mangaluru landed on the west coast. This consignment fills one of the two strategic reserve caverns at Mangaluru under an agreement between Adnoc and the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd (ISPRL).
Albanna also highlighted the close ties between India and the UAE which were elevated to that of a Comprehensive and Strategic Partnership during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the Gulf nation in August 2015, the first prime ministerial visit from India to that country in 34 years.
This was followed by the visit of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince and Deputy Commander of the UAE Armed Forces to India Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in 2016 and then again in 2017 as the chief guest for India's Republic Day celebrations. Modi again visited the UAE last year where he delivered the keynote address at the World Government Summit in Dubai.
Stating that India is one of the first countries with which the UAE has signed a strategic agreement, he said there are collaborations at many different levels.
"Whether we talk about traditional sectors like oil and gas and the normal trade and also the new sectors such as cooperation in airspace, cooperation in IT, IT manufacturing, cooperation in security and security exchange, security information exchange, and also in solar energy," he said.
"If we look at the bilateral trade between the UAE and India, India is trading partner number one (for the UAE) with a total value of $57 billion," Albanna said.
"If we look at the Indian side, the UAE is the third-largest trading partner after China and the US."
Stating that all these show the importance of the India-UAE relationship, the Ambassador said that it "reflects the vision of our leadership to look at this bilateral trade and to make it further grow".
He also referred to UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan's week-long visit to India last month and said that there are many outcomes of the visit "which we are now at the stage of following up and look at the best way of implementation".
The UAE is home to a nearly three million-strong expatriate Indian population.
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CM Revanth Reddy accuses China of 'encroaching' over 2,000 km of Indian land since 2014
Hyderabad, Dec 24: Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Tuesday accused China of "encroaching" over 2,000 kilometres of Indian land since 2014, claiming that the "rulers" lack the courage to discuss the issue and reveal the facts.
Speaking at a book release function, Reddy also expressed concerns about the ongoing conflict between two groups in Manipur, which he attributed to the rich mineral resources in the region.
He questioned why the central government, representing 140 crore people, and the Indian forces have been unable to establish peace in the troubled northeastern state.
"Which corporate companies are encouraging internal war in Manipur?" Reddy asked, mentioning his visit to the state during Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s foot march.
"Since we are all busy with our daily lives, we fail to notice what’s happening around us. As a former defence committee member (when I was a Lok Sabha member), I cannot officially reveal the issues discussed in the meetings, but China has encroached over 2,000 sq km. The rulers lack the courage to discuss this subject or reveal the facts, and no one is taking up these issues," he alleged.
Claiming that thousands of AK-47 rifles are being used in Manipur, Reddy emphasised that issues like Chinese intrusion, the internal conflict in Manipur, and the use of illegal weapons need to be discussed in Parliament.
"Whether it is Chinese intrusion, the conflict in Manipur or the use of AK-47 rifles, an extensive discussion on these issues is necessary to control them. Only then can peace be established in this country—peace that is essential for the development of our nation," he stated.
He also recalled Colonel Santosh Babu, a Telangana native, who was martyred during the Chinese attack in 2020.
