New Delhi, Nov 16 (IANS) Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Hardeep Singh Puri, said on Sunday that India’s youthful energy and South Korea’s technology advantage can be a win-win combination for both countries.

The minister, who is on a visit to Seoul, said he was “delighted to connect with a group of young Indian professionals and students seeking career and educational avenues in Korea.”

“They spoke passionately about their dreams and fervour to serve India’s growth and development under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” the minister wrote in a post on X.

Puri also met the top executives of several South Korean companies, to explore avenues for strategic India-Korea collaboration, especially in the field of shipbuilding.

Korean shipping companies have the knowledge and capacity and India has the demand, the skilled manpower and the right policies to turn this into a winning partnership aligned with the ‘Make in India’ initiative, the minister added.

“Visited the sprawling shipbuilding facility of Hanwha Ocean in South Korea’s Geoje. With robust growth across sectors, the Indian economy, which is among the fastest growing economies in the world, along with our energy sector offer massive partnership and investment opportunities in our journey towards being Viksit Bharat under PM Modi,” Puri said in an earlier post on X.

“Our energy PSUs spend about $5-8 billion for energy freight annually and already have a requirement of about 59 vessels to begin with. There is a huge opportunity for global majors like Hanwha Ocean to collaborate and build these vessels in India,” he observed.

The minister further stated that this is the right time and it is a very compelling case for “our cooperation for making ships for meeting global demand”.

“We will not only recover the costs of our vessels in 5 years, but will also establish India as a global maritime shipping hub,” said Puri.

India has introduced robust support measures to accelerate shipbuilding activities, like 15–25 per cent capital support for vessels built in India; 5 per cent additional incentive for ship recycling; Marine Development Fund for equity financing; 3 per cent interest subvention and infrastructure support for greenfield shipyards and clusters.

The minister focused on boosting LNG and crude carrier shipbuilding to meet India’s growing energy demands and build a self-reliant maritime future.

Puri earlier visited the state-of-the-art shipyard of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries in Ulsan.

The sprawling facility, spread across 1,680 acres is the world’s largest shipyard engaged in ship construction, offshore plant, and engine and machinery sectors.

“With 20 per cent of vessels either coming or going to India in the next 15 years, this will be a golden opportunity for Korean ship manufacturers to partner with us and ‘Make in India for the World’,” the minister added.

–IANS

sps/na