The minister of petroleum and natural gas in India, Shri Murli Deora, has invited companies from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) to participate in the oil and gas sector in India.

At the launch of a roundtable discussion between CIS countries and India in New Delhi today, Shri Deora said there were a number of areas that the two sides could work together on so that the country's oil and gas sector could be developed.

One such area is the training and development of personnel working with hydrocarbons, as well as in the creation and modernisation of refineries.

Current cooperation deals that the India cites as examples for the kind of work that could be carried out include the Sakhalin-1 project in Russia, while gas import deals and other business opportunities in the CIS region are also up for discussion at the roundtable event.

Both parties involved in the roundtable discussions spoke in favour of stronger relations - and working for the development of this sector through training is one joint goal.

In related news, the prime minister of India Manhoman Singh has recently completed visits to two Gulf states in a bid to boost energy ties between the regions.

Oil and Gas Directory: Training and Development