MUMBAI: Total has agreed to buy a 37.4 percent stake in India’s Adani Gas, the two firms said Monday, with the French giant spending $600 million to expand its access to the energy-hungry country.

The Indian firm, part of the Adani Group conglomerate, is one of the four main distributors of city gas in the country, and plans to increase its coverage to six million homes and 1,500 outlets to supply vehicles over the next decade.

Under the terms of the deal, Total will make an open offer to Adani Gas shareholders to purchase up to 25.2 percent before buying the remaining equity from the company, leaving the French and Indian firms with an equal share.

“Energy needs in India are immense and the Indian energy mix is key to the climate change challenge,” Patrick Pouyanne, Total chairman and chief executive, said in a statement. “The natural gas market in India will have a strong growth and is an attractive outlet for the world’s second-largest LNG player that Total has become,” he added.—AFP