Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accepted an invitation from Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to visit the country on May 22 and 23, the External Affairs Ministry announced on Tuesday. Major energy deals could be made during the trip, even as India hustles to pay Tehran $ 6.5 billion (approximately Rs 4.34 lakh crore) for past crude oil imports. The money will be paid in Euros through Turkish bank Halkbank, NDTV reported. India is a huge market for Iranian crud oil.

The MEA’s statement said “India and Iran share longstanding ties” and that Modi’s visit will look at “boosting bilateral trade, facilitating people-to-people interaction in various spheres and promoting peace and stability in the region.”

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Major projects that could be discussed during the visit includez the development of the Chabahar port. In February, India had approved a credit line of $150 million (Rs 1,000 crore) towards the project in an effort to sidestep Pakistan and improve its access to Afghanistan, where it has security and economic interests. India has also been trying to secure rights to develop the Farzad B gas field in Iran, an offshore block that the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation of India had discovered in 2008.

Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Road Transport and Highway Minister Nitin Gadkari have all visited the West Asian country over the past few months.

India is believed to have earmarked $20 billion (Rs 1.33 lakh crore) for investments in the oil and gas as well as petrochemicals and fertilisers sectors in Iran, where economic sanctions imposed on it by the West were lifted in January. Since then, many major economies have eyed investments in the oil-rich nation, and India appears to be stepping up its efforts.

Modi and Rouhani last met in July 2015 at Ufa, Russia, on the sidelines of a BRICS – Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa – and Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit.