India, Qatar agree to boost energy, trade cooperation

India and Qatar today signed six agreements in diverse areas, including a pact on cooperation in oil and gas exploration and boosting bilateral trade.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also held talks with Qatar's Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani on a range of issues, on boosting ties between the two countries.

The Emir, who arrived on Sunday for a three-day visit, is understood to have expressed keenness to export more oil and LNG from Qatar.

While Qatar, Qatar, the world's third-largest natural gas reserves after Russia and Iran, is ready to increase sale of oil and gas to India, pricing of gas remains a major issue in increased import of gas from that country.

Petroleum minister S Jaipal Reddy and Qatar's energy minister Mohammed Bin Saleh al-Sada signed a pact on establishing a cooperative framework to enhance bilateral cooperation in oil and gas.

The pact, which envisages cooperation in the areas of upstream and downstream oil and gas activities, is expected to encourage bilateral investment in the oil and gas sector.