New Delhi: India and the US can increase their bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030 by expanding investments in oil and gas, according to a new report by the US-India Business Council and Grant Thornton Bharat. Released on 10 June, the report examines how India’s growing energy demand and US capacity can benefit both countries’ trade relations.
“India’s rapidly expanding economy and rising energy demand present significant investment opportunities for US companies,” states the report.
In 2025, the US and India agreed on a new initiative titled COMPACT – Catalysing Opportunities for Military Partnership, Accelerated Commerce & Technology. This initiative, announced during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the US, also included segments on energy security collaboration between the countries, as both leaders “recommitted” to the US-India Energy Security Partnership.
While the partnership agreed to focus on oil, gas and civil nuclear energy, the Grant Thornton report specifically focuses on hydrocarbons—oil and natural gas.
The report recommended strategies beyond just increasing US exports of crude oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) to India, from US companies investing in India’s oil exploration projects to collaborating on AI-powered oil and gas demand forecasting technologies. It also recommended that the US and India could share technological support on expanding and maintaining strategic petroleum reserves.
Late last year, India also struck a historic deal to import 2.2 million tonnes per annum of liquid petroleum gas (LPG) from the US Gulf Coast, marking the first structured contract with the US market. With increasing trade relations and the recent interim Bilateral Trade Framework agreement, the deal could be the start of expansive energy deals between India and US, according to experts.
“The evolution of the India-US energy relationship reflects the broader trajectory of our bilateral partnership-moving from transactional engagement to deeper strategic integration,” said Rahul Sharma, Managing Director, USIBC, India.
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Oil and gas trade
Currently, India produces around 29 million metric tonnes of crude oil and imports 245 million, creating an import dependency of 88 per cent of its total demand. Similarly, India’s LNG imports are around 50 per cent of total consumption, solidifying the country’s position as one of the world’s top five importers of LNG.
Meanwhile, the US is the world’s largest exporter of LNG, and in 2024 it exported a total of 115 billion cubic meters. Of this, around 7,250 million cubic meters, or 6 per cent, went to India.
The report pointed out that by 2030, India’s energy demand is expected to grow by 60 per cent, while the US is expected to double its gas liquefaction capacity. Given this context, Grant Thornton and USIBC pointed out multiple opportunities for “long-term” energy partnerships between the two countries.
In May this year, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited India and met Foreign Minister S Jaishankar, and both discussed the possibility of energy trade increasing between the two countries.
“This year, there’s actually been a very significant uptick in our energy imports from the US,” said Jaishankar during the press conference. “The United States has emerged as a very significant and reliable source of energy.”
However, the USIBC and Grant Thornton report said that there are still certain avenues that India and the US could collaborate on, especially through private bilateral investments in energy companies.
In India’s hydrocarbons market, the report outlined that US companies could invest in deep-ocean and offshore oil exploration projects, Andaman and Nicobar basin drilling activities, and even develop LNG infrastructure like bunkering facilities and refuelling stations.
Meanwhile, Indian companies could look into investing in the US’s upcoming LNG liquefaction projects, acquiring equity stakes in US shale and oil fields, and even entering into long-term purchase agreements with some LNG and ethane companies.
“Successful execution of these strategies will reinforce India’s long-term energy security while strengthening the resilience and commercial prospects of both economies,” states the report.
(Edited by Saptak Datta)