MOSCOW, August 24. /TASS/. Russia considers energy cooperation with India a priority, both in terms of supplies and joint hydrocarbon production and processing, Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov said at a meeting of the two countries’ intergovernmental commission on cooperation.

"We attach priority importance to cooperation in the field of energy security. This concerns not only supplies of oil, petroleum products, and coal, but also joint investment projects in hydrocarbon production and processing," he noted.

Earlier, Russian Energy Minister Sergey Tsivilyov said that India remained a key partner for Russia’s fuel and energy sector and that oil supplies remained at a high level. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak also noted that Russia was interested in attracting Indian investment in its oil and gas sector, as well as developing a distribution network in India with the participation of Russian companies.

Russia also sees potential for new joint projects with India in the extraction and processing of nonferrous, rare, and rare-earth metals, Manturov said. "We see potential for expanding cooperation in metallurgy and mining, including the joint development of deposits and the processing of nonferrous, rare, and rare-earth metals," he noted.

India will serve as the partner country of the international Russian Energy Week (REW) forum this year, becoming the first official partner country in the event’s history.