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BP looks to boost India presence after board meet

New Delhi: Supermajor BP is looking to grow its business in India as it scouts for more opportunities in the world’s fastest growing energy market, its top official said. BP board, after more than a decade, held its meetings in India during a five-day visit starting September 23 and went charmed.

“They (BP board) know what we have done in India, the success we have had is what brings them here. Because they recognize the ability to create much more in India,” said Sashi Mukundan, outgoing India head of BP group. “For me, it was very important that we needed to showcase India for them. And I can tell you all 12 of them have gone back saying, ‘Oh, my God! What an experience’.”

BP has a century-long presence in India, having invested more than $12 billion across the energy value chain including oil and gas exploration and production, downstream fuel retailing and mobility solutions and renewables. The main reason for bringing the board to India was to showcase the opportunities the world’s third-biggest oil importer and consuming nation presents.

“That was the main reason for bringing them to India. Because, you know, now when we take projects to them, when we take ideas to them, you know, they can understand (and) they connect the situation in India,” Mukundan said.

On the visit of the board, the company statement on Wednesday quoted CEO Murray Auchincloss, saying, “We see growing business opportunities, including through our world-class partnership with Reliance, producing the country’s gas and growing our joint retail presence.” The firm has in partnership with billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Limited in recent years brought on stream three new deepwater natural gas projects that account for one-third of India’s gas production.

BP and Reliance have also created a retail, aviation fuels, and mobility alliance, Jio-bp, with nearly 1,900 retail sites and 5,000 charging points.

Also, it sells lubricants through Castrol, does oil and gas trading, and clean energy projects through BP’s solar power firm Lightsource BP, the third largest in the world outside of China.

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