India has sought help from Kuwait for reviving its fertiliser industry, plagued by supply constraints and lack of investments for capacity expansion.
"India seeks Kuwaiti participation in revival of Indian fertiliser industry," Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath said in a meeting with Kuwait's Minister of Finance Mustafa Jassim Al-Shamali. The highly subsidised fertiliser industry has not been able to attract fresh investments, resulting in stagnating supplies. With demand for fertilisers on the rise, India depends on imports to meet its requirements.
The government has been undertaking a series of measures to ease the fertiliser subsidy burden and increase availability of fertilisers in the country. It has been looking at setting up units in countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Egypt and Nigeria where natural gas, the main fuel for urea plants, is easily available.
Inviting investments for development of infrastructure, power, petroleum and petro-chemical sectors, Nath said the two countries can enhance trade in leather goods, drugs, steel and tourism. In 2007-08, non-oil trade between the two countries amounted to $958.41 million. India's exports to Kuwait during April 2007 and February 2008 was worth $589.78 million, with basmati rice, machinery, meat and preparations, manufactures of metals, primary and semi-finished iron and steel being the major items shipped.
India imported petroleum, crude products, organic chemicals, metal scraps and fertiliser manufactured from Kuwait.
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