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: February 27, 2025

Recent projects

amit paper cover Courtesy: Gateway House
21 December 2020 Gateway House

India’s energy investments: A fresh approach

India’s investments in energy thus far have concentrated on buying stakes in oilfields in developing countries often at the risk of political unpredictability. With oil prices, and therefore oil company values, falling – India should revise this strategy and aim for better value and lower risk by making investments in companies in the developed world. This paper recommends investing in oil and gas assets in energy-rich developed countries like the U.S., Canada and Australia, to reduce India's vulnerability to future increases in energy prices. These should be made via a sovereign wealth fund (SWF), not the national oil companies. The SWF will be best served by acting as a financial investor, acquiring, only minority stakes, rather than aiming for management control.
India-Canada Energy Cooperation Courtesy: Gateway House & CIGI
9 July 2020 Gateway House & CIGI

India-Canada energy cooperation

Canada has been one of the biggest success stories in oil over the past few years. India should consider financial investments in Canadian energy assets as a means to secure its energy supplies. This paper studies the feasibility and prospects for Indian investment in Canada's petroleum sector.
shutterstock_353371844 Courtesy: Shutterstock
16 April 2020 Gateway House

Oil in the post-COVID-19 world

The OPEC’s proposed cut in oil production earlier this week may not enable the energy market to recover. Recovery is likely only after COVID-19 is brought under control, but there are ways India can capitalise on the current low oil prices for its own energy security
shutterstock_365191952 (1) Courtesy: Shutterstock
19 March 2020 Gateway House

Good and bad of low oil prices

The Coronavirus pandemic has caused crude oil prices to crash almost 40% even as Saudi Arabia and Russia pump more oil into the market. Fears are rife that this crisis will hit demand. There are repercussions on the U.S., the world’s top oil producer, on India, one of its new clients, and on the Gulf Cooperation Council countries
Chinese-Investments-in-India-Report_2020_Cover Courtesy: Gateway House
9 March 2020 Gateway House

Chinese investments in India

Over the last five years, China has quietly created a significant place for itself in India – in the technology domain. While India has refused to sign on to China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), this report shows India's positioning in the virtual BRI to be strategically invaluable for China. Nearly $4 billion in venture investments in start-ups, the online ecosystem and apps have been made by Chinese entities. This is just the beginning; there is more to come.
shutterstock_1469502182 Courtesy: Shutterstock
27 February 2020 Mint

India-U.S. shale oil opportunity

U.S. President Donald Trump's recent visit to India gave a boost to bilateral energy ties. To really benefit, India’s state-owned oil companies should consider investing in U.S. shale oil. The U.S. is politically and economically stable and investors are not subject to arbitrary action. Indian companies should only be financial investors, not operators of assets, and bet on companies with manageable debt and efficient operations rather than short-term winners

Chinese Investments In India Cover final-2020 - Copy Courtesy: Gateway House
27 February 2020 Gateway House

India in the virtual Belt and Road

Over the last five years, China has quietly created a significant place for itself in India – in the technology domain. While India has refused to sign on to China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), this map shows India's positioning in the virtual BRI to be strategically invaluable for China. Nearly $4 billion in venture investments in start-ups, the online ecosystem and apps have been made by Chinese entities. This is just the beginning; there is much more to come.

shutterstock_201055439 Courtesy: Shutterstock
30 January 2020 Vivekananda International Foundation

China’s energy challenges: lessons for India

China’s clean-up of its cities and its success in improving urban air quality hold important lessons for India. But the outbreak of the corona virus and reports that news about it was initially suppressed tell a different story. While physical infrastructure is important, equally vital are a free media and an open society, where people are not afraid to speak