Amit Bhandari

Amit Bhandari

Senior Fellow, Energy, Investment and Connectivity

Amit has nearly two decades of experience as a public policy researcher, an entrepreneur and a financial analyst. He is the author of "India and the Changing Geopolitics of Oil (Routlege, 2021), a book that looks at India's changing role in the global oil trade and how it can use this heft to secure energy supplies. He is also the lead author of the report "Chinese Investments in India" (Feb 2020), which looked at China's penetration of India's startup ecosystem. He is the founder of tezbid.com, a numismatic portal.
Amit started his career with the Economic Times, where he tracked the energy sector. He was a part of the start-up team of ET Now, the business news channel. Amit was responsible for setting up India Reality Research, a new research outfit within CLSA India, a stockbroking firm. He has also worked with Deccan Chronicle Group as the business editor for their general dailies.
He holds a Master in Business Administration from IIM- Ahmedabad and a Bachelors degree in Technology from IIT-BHU.
Expertise

Energy: Trade, Markets, Geopolitics & Technology; Investments; Connectivity, Infrastructure, OBOR, BRI

Last modified: December 21, 2017

Recent projects

china oil Courtesy: Yahoo
1 September 2016 Gateway House

China’s oil paralysis, our gain

The sheen is coming off China’s state-owned oil companies, which have been hit by the country’s political churning and by their own excesses of buying assets at the peak of the cycle. Now with oil prices low, India has the chance to make well-priced acquisitions without Chinese competition.

ONGC-kqh--621x414@LiveMint Courtesy: Livemint
4 August 2016 Gateway House

Securing oil: buy now, hold exploration

The fall in oil prices means it is now cheaper for ONGC to acquire discovered oil fields than to explore on its own. To profit from the changed dynamic, India needs to go big on a ‘buy’ strategy.

The_Kudankulam_Nuclear_Power_Plant_(KKNPP) Courtesy: Wikipedia
14 July 2016 Gateway House

Renewable 1, Nuclear 0

India’s newest reactor shows what’s wrong with nuclear power, and why India must go slow on expensive western designed nuclear power projects.

refuel-577348_960_720 Courtesy: Pixabay
6 June 2016 Gateway House

Oil@50: India needs to speed up

India needs to act faster to ensure it continues to get energy at an affordable price. The oil price increase to $50 per barrel shows there is a limited window of time to act.

Raichur_Thermal_Power_Station Courtesy: Wikipedia
12 May 2016 Gateway House

India’s energy: three years, three aims

Relatively low fossil fuel prices have created a favourable climate for the Modi government to secure India’s growing energy needs in a sustainable manner and at fair prices. The government should also encourage locally-built wind and nuclear options to secure India’s long-term needs.

West_Texas_Pumpjack Courtesy: Wikipedia
13 April 2016 Gateway House

North America: petro state

The U.S. and Canada offer an opportunity for India to acquire large scale oil and gas fields in politically stable countries at a low price. A financial investment in energy companies will protect India against a rise in energy prices without raising concerns in host countries.

India_fields_and_wind_turbines Courtesy: Wikipedia
23 March 2016 Gateway House

Move over solar; welcome, wind

After the recent WTO ruling against India on the issue of local content of solar panels, India must revise its renewable energy strategy in favour of wind power. Instead of imported solar panels, India’s renewable capacities can use locally-manufactured windmills.