News

According to Indian media sources, Indian state entities Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) and NMDC Limited are exploring the option of acquiring coking coal mines in Russia. The rationale behind this planned acquisition is to secure vital raw materials for India's growing steel industry. In this regard, India has already sent a delegation to Russia to hold talks with government officials and industrialists. Currently, India imports almost half of its coking coal demand from Australia.

Apart from coking coal assets, India is also considering increasing the supply of nickel from Russia. India primarily imports nickel from China, Japan, Norway, and the United States, and at present, imports of nickel from Russia are in very small quantities. Notably, nickel is crucial for India's electric vehicle supply chain, particularly for batteries. Nickel is also used in making stainless steel.

St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), the largest business event in Russia, is going to be held in St. Petersburg, Russia.

SPIEF will host a Business Program on the theme of Russia-India, which will be moderated by Mr. Sergey Cheremin, Minister of the Government of Moscow and Head of the Department for External Economic and International Relations of Moscow. The speakers of this program are as follows:

Denis Alipov, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the Republic of India
Alexander Gilgenberg, Chief Executive Officer, PhosAgro
Raman Dutta, Founder, Chairman, Brands and Sourcing Leaders Association
Vladimir Ilichev, Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation
Sammy Kotwani, President, Indian Business Alliance (IBA)
Vinay Kumar, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of India to the Russian Federation
Lokesh Nara, Minister of Information Technology, Electronics and Communications, Government of Andhra Pradesh
Ivan Nosov, Chief Manager, Branch of Sberbank in India
Vikram Punia, President, Pharmasyntez Group of Companies
Alexey Russkih, Governor of Ulyanovsk Region
Debjit Chakraborty, Director, Chamber for Indo-Russo Technology Collaboration
Alexey Chekunkov, Minister of the Russian Federation for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic
Ravi Shankar, Founder, The Art of Living Foundation

Date: 4th June, 2026

Time: 11:00-12:15 A.M

Venue: Passage in zone H, Passage conference hall, ExpoForum (64/1, Peterburgskoye Shosse), St. Petersburg, Russia

To Participate: https://forum-spb.ru/en/participants/become-a-participant/

This event offers investor, industrialists, and entrepreneurs an exceptional opportunity for a closed-door meeting with key officials from Government of Nizhny Novgorod region, which is considered as Russia’s leading industrial and technology center.

Date: 25th March, 2026

Time: 14:30 (UTC+3)

Venue: Representative Office of the Government of the Nizhny Novgorod Region, 7 Maly Palashevsky Lane, Moscow

Registration Form: https://forms.yandex.ru/u/69a04b1ee010db1336bad3a1/

Contact person: Ms. Irina Karikh (+7 925 020 – 74-07)

The Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC) and the Embassy of the Republic of India in Russia successfully organized the second conference on the theme "India and Russia: Towards a New Bilateral Agenda,” on March 23, 2026. The conference was attended by Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, the Minister of External Affairs of India, and Sergey Lavrov, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. In addition to them, the conference was attended by the scholars and key-officials.

Dr Jaishankar noted the target of achieving bilateral trade of USD 100 Billion by the year 2030 in a balanced and sustainable manner, and therefore both sides must put forth effort to conclude a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India-Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) to address non-tariff barriers and utilize the skilled Indian workforce. Dr. Jaishankar also acknowledged that Russia is the foremost partner of India in civil nuclear energy and cited the stellar example of Kudankulum Nuclear Project. Meanwhile, Mr. Lavrov also recognized the time-tested friendship between Russia and India and emphasized deepening cooperation in logistics, technology and investment, including through the development of the International North-South Transport Corridor and the Northern Sea Route.

The India-Russia Pharma Business Meet (BSM CIS 2026) is jointly organized by the Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India (PHARMEXCIL), the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, and the Embassy of India, Moscow, Russian Federation. It will take place on:

Dates: March 16 – 17, 2026

Venue: Hotel Baltschug Kempinski Moscow (Balchug street, 1)

Time: 10:00 AM to 06:00 PM

More than 60 leading Indian pharmaceutical companies will be participating, covering a wide spectrum of products including:

Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) and Intermediates
Finished Formulations (Tablets, Capsules, Liquid Orals)
Injectables and Medical Devices
Veterinary Formulations
Nutraceuticals and Cosmeceuticals

It is a warm invitation to all IBA members to attend the business meet and explore potential partnerships with the visiting Indian delegates.

Please find the registration link for industry participants here:

https://forms.gle/ord6oPki4iG7r2ht8