Speaking at the international conference on investment opportunities in Kazakhstan, organised by the Conferedation of Indian Industry (CII), Ramamurthy said, ``we would be happy if Kazhakhstan government offers our national oil companies commercially viable projects in the petroleum sector." India is the sixth largest energy market in the world and over 40 per cent of the commercial energy requirements are provided by oil and gas creating a natural basis for closer cooperation betweenthe two countries, he said. The consumption of petroleum products in the country has increased steadily and has reached a level of 85 million metric tonnes in 1997-98 and is projected to be 113 million tonnes in 2001-02 and 155 million tonnes by the year 2006, he said.

Demand for petroleum products is likely to get a further boost from initiatives of the government to create national highways connecting Kashmir in the north to Kanyakumari in the south, Saurashtra in the west to Silchar in the east, covering a length of 7,000 km, Ramamurthy said. ``This together with the supply boom in the auto industry, particularly in the small car segment, due to increased competition, would lead to a structural shift in the pattern of demand for petroleum products,'' he said.

The minister said, the low per capita consumption of petroleum products in India at present and high consumption in the future in line with developed countries would assure a great petroleum market in the country. Stating that Kazakhstan has anestimated proved reserves of eight billion barrels of oil and 1.84 trillion cubic metres of gas, while India's demand for petroleum products were on the rise, he said, there was immense potential for cooperation between the two countries in this core sector.

Ramamurthy said, imports of crude oil and petroleum products in the country were on the rise and as a result the self-sufficiency level had been registered at 37 per cent in 1997-98 as against the earlier 70 per cent. Speaking on the occasion the deputy prime minister of Kazakhstan, Z Karibzhanov said that inspite of last year's shock, the economy of Kazakhstan offers strong potential for trade between the two countries in the oil and gas sector.