SCO membership to help India get foothold in energy-rich CAsia

India will get a major boost in its quest for greater access to hydrocarbons in Central Asia as it is all set to get full membership of the Shanghai Corporation Organisation,comprising all major energy producing nations of the region and dominated by China and Russia.
India, one of the largest energy consumers in the world, is keen to get the membership of the grouping as it will help it play a major role in the SCO energy club which was set up to create a unified energy market as well as to ensure cooperation among major oil and gas companies from the member nations.

Three major suppliers of energy -- Russia, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan - have been playing crucial role in the SCO energy club and the Indian government feels getting membership of the bloc will give it greater access to a number of key energy projects in the region.
Government sources said SCO membership will also help to make headway in the proposed pipeline project from Russia to India, being billed as one of the most ambitious initiatives in recent years in the energy sector in the region.
India does not want the pipeline, which may cost over USD 40 billion, to enter India through Pakistan and may look for alternative route including through China.

"The SCO membership will help India get a foothold in major energy projects involving Central Asian countries. It will ensure India's integration with the region," a top government official told PTI.
India had formally applied for membership of SCO in its summit meeting in Dushanbe on September 12 where External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had said India was ready to step up engagement with the grouping.
India is almost certain to get the SCO membership within a year as China has backed the move. India has been an observer at SCO since 2005 and has generally participated at the ministerial-level at summits of the grouping which focuses mainly on security and economic cooperation in the Eurasian space.