Comm Secy to visit US; India open to raise energy purchases from America

New Delhi, Oct 15 (PTI) Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal will join the Indian delegation in the US tomorrow for trade talks, with India indicating its readiness to step up energy imports from America.

In the past 7-8 years, energy purchases from the US, largely crude oil, have come down from USD 25 billion to around USD 12-13 billion.

"So, there is a headroom of around USD 12-15 billion, which we can purchase without worrying about the configuration of refineries," Agrawal told reporters here.

"And there is a bilateral commitment, and in discussions we are in, we have indicated very positively that India as a country would like to diversify its portfolio as far as energy imports are concerned. That's the best strategy for a big buyer like India." These remarks are important as purchasing more crude oil from the US will address Washington's concerns on the merchandise trade deficit with India, which stood at USD 45.8 billion in 2024-25.

"As a country, we will be very happy to buy more energy from the US, subject to...availability at the right price," Agrawal said.

The Indian negotiating team is already in Washington for trade talks, and Agrawal will join them tomorrow.

"Our negotiating team is already in the US, and (they are) trying to see if we can have a win-win solution between the two sides, which can address some of these tariff issues," he said.

When asked if this is a formal round of negotiations, the secretary said the US is in shutdown, and because of that, their manpower strength is down as they are not working.

"So, that's not the right time to have a full-fledged negotiation. Having said that, there is a movement on both sides where we are trying to see if there is a pathway to address the current trade challenges. Both sides are discussing to see if there are any answers," he added.

In February this year, leaders of the two countries directed officials to negotiate a proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA). They have fixed a deadline to conclude the first tranche of the pact by the fall (October-November) of 2025.

So far, five rounds of negotiations have been completed.

Last month, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal led an official delegation to New York for trade talks.

These deliberations are important as the relations between the two countries have been reeling under severe stress after the Trump administration imposed a steep 50 per cent tariff on Indian goods. It includes a 25 per cent additional import duty for buying Russian crude oil.

India has described these duties as "unfair, unjustified and unreasonable".

The Indian industry has also raised concerns over Trump's new policy on H1B visas.

However, the recent phone conversations between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump have raised hopes for a positive outcome from the ongoing negotiations for the trade deal.

After a brief gap, Assistant US Trade Representative for South and Central Asia Brendan Lynch held talks with Indian officials here in New Delhi on September 16. In that meeting, both sides agreed to push for an early and mutually beneficial conclusion of the agreement.

Last week, US Ambassador-designate to India Sergio Gor held talks with the Commerce Secretary on India-US economic ties.

The proposed pact aims to more than double the bilateral trade to USD 500 billion by 2030 from the current USD 191 billion.

The US remained India's largest trading partner for the fourth consecutive year in 2024-25, with bilateral trade valued at USD 131.84 billion (USD 86.5 billion exports).

It accounts for about 18 per cent of India's total goods exports, 6.22 per cent in imports, and 10.73 per cent in the country's total merchandise trade. PTI RR RR BAL BAL