New Delhi [India], November 17 (ANI): Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday participated in a Roundtable with leading Japanese industry representatives in Tokyo, focusing on opportunities for Indo-Japanese collaboration across the entire energy value chain.

The discussions centred on how India and Japan, two major economies in the Indo-Pacific, can collaborate to develop secure, sustainable, and future-ready energy systems.

According to an official release, Puri highlighted that India's massive scale, rising energy demand, and unprecedented infrastructure expansion under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, combined with Japan's technological excellence, create a natural partnership for the region's long-term energy stability.

During the discussions, the Minister noted that, during Prime Minister Modi's visit to Japan in August of this year, both countries adopted the India-Japan Joint Vision for the Next Decade. Building on the significant progress made towards the 2022-2026 target of JPY 5 trillion in public and private investment from Japan to India, an ambitious new goal of JPY 10 trillion (~USD 68 billion) in private investment has been set for the near future.

This milestone underscores the growing strategic alignment between the two nations, particularly in clean energy and emerging technologies, and reflects the Prime Minister's commitment to translating this partnership into practical and transformative outcomes.

Puri emphasised that India is opening up over USD 500 billion in investment opportunities across exploration and production, LNG, city gas distribution, hydrogen, shipping, and new fuels. India, with its large and young workforce, a strong reform-driven business environment, and the spirit of 'Make in India for the World,' offers immense potential for Japanese investors.

Japan, in turn, brings cutting-edge technology, advanced industrial systems, expertise in high-quality infrastructure, and global leadership in green and environmental technologies--making the partnership inherently complementary.

He underlined that India's policy landscape has been transformed through 100 per cent FDI in energy sectors, transparent bidding, and year-round exploration licensing, creating a predictable and investor-friendly environment. The Minister noted that India's six major oil and gas PSUs recorded revenues of about USD 315 billion in FY 2024-25, representing nearly 8 per cent of India's GDP. Such scale, he said, positions India as a global anchor in the energy sector and a reliable long-term partner for Japanese companies.

The Minister highlighted that India today is the world's third-largest oil consumer and will account for nearly 30 per cent of incremental global energy demand over the next two decades. He noted India's expanding natural gas infrastructure--which includes an investment outlay of approximately USD 72 billion--as a major area of synergy with Japan's technological strength, especially in integrating gas with future energy solutions such as hydrogen.

Puri recalled the long-standing trust between the two countries, citing the example of the Maruti-Suzuki partnership, which reshaped India's industrial landscape. He said that today, India and Japan stand at a similar inflection point in the energy sector--one where they can build world-class capabilities, co-create resilient supply chains, develop skilled human capital, and jointly strengthen the energy security of the Indo-Pacific.

The Minister concluded by inviting Japanese industry to actively participate in India's evolving energy opportunities, assuring them that the Government of India stands ready to facilitate and support deeper collaboration across the value chain. (ANI)