India and energy-rich Qatar on Monday signed six pacts including an accord on oil and gas exploration. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh held talks with Qatar's Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani in New Delhi, which focused on boosting trade and investment as well as energy ties between the countries. Following the talks, agreements on banking, tourism, legal matters and promoting cultural contacts and educational exchanges were signed, India's Foreign Ministry announced.
The parties also signed a pact on oil and gas exploration. Qatar, which holds the world's third-largest natural gas reserves after Russia and Iran, has an liquefied natural gas export capacity of 77 million tonnes a year. India buys 7.5 million tonnes of gas from Qatar annually under a long-term contract. Issues relating to welfare of Indian workers in the country were also discussed. Qatar is home to 500,000 of the six million Indians in Gulf countries who send approximately 30 billion dollars in remittances every year.
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