Federal government would continue its oil export to India as the Asian country struggles behind United States and China in the scramble for future energy supply guarantees from resource owners.

Presidential Adviser on Petroleum Matters, Dr. Edmond Egbogah, declared in New Delhi that Nigeria's output would soon recover to meet its core export demands in the industrialized and developing countries of the world.

He said at the second India-Africa hydrocarbons conference that Nigeria was driving plans to repair pipelines in the Niger Delta to accelerate increasing production of crude and easing worldwide supply concerns.

While most of the country's over 38 billion barrels of proven oil resources are in the Niger Delta, militant attacks on pipelines and other infrastructure had hit production.

Dr. Egbogah however declared that production was fast recovering "with the decrease in terrorist attacks in the Niger delta," adding that government would repair the pipeline infrastructure to increase the present production.

Business Champion reports that Nigeria is a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and has the second largest hydrocarbon reserves in Africa after Libya.

It is the chief contributor to 15 percent of overall crude imported by India.

India depends on imports to meet its oil needs and is particularly vulnerable to price volatility. As the world's fifth-largest energy consumer, India imports 75 percent of its requirements and accounts for some 3.5 percent of global consumption.

It will become the third-largest oil importer after the US and China before 2025, with energy demands expected to almost double by 2030, the International Energy Agency says.

"We have a capacity to produce 3.67 million barrels per day (mbpd). We can increase the oil production to around 2.506 mbpd," Egbogah said. "With no more violent attacks, the pipeline infrastructure is safe and repair of the infrastructure will increase the production."

Volatility has marked crude oil prices, which reached a record $147 per barrel in July last year and have since fallen by about half. New York Mercantile Exchange crude was trading at $72 per barrel on Thursday evening.

Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) boss, Dr. Mohammed Barkindo, had told the National Assembly that oil firms would carry out repairs on vandalized facilities and return to production sites.

He said NNPC has earmarked $285 million for new oil projects, the agency reported.

India and China, both growing economies, need fuel reserves to feed their soaring energy needs. Africa is estimated to have around 10 percent of the world's oil reserves and a number of Indian hydrocarbon firms are interested in acquiring hydrocarbon blocks in Nigeria.

ONGC-Mittal Energy Ltd, (Omel), a venture of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp. Ltd (ONGC) and Mittal Investments Sarl, a firm owned by the family of steel magnate L.N. Mittal, was awarded rights to explore for oil and gas in two blocks in 2006.

Some of the oil firms operating in Nigeria through joint ventures with NNPC include Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Chevron Corp, ConocoPhillips Co, ExxonMobil Corp and Total S.A.

"The situation in Nigeria is changing with the NGO scrutiny increasing a lot," said Nikhil Hira, a partner at consulting firm Deloitte and Touche and based in Kenya.