BRIEFING - ASIA ENERGY - JAN 1, 2008.

An executive briefing on energy for Jan 1, 2008, prepared by Asia Pulse (http://www.asiapulse.com), the real-time, Asia-based wire with exclusive news, commercial intelligence and business opportunities.

INDIAN STATES SEEK PETROCHEM INVESTMENT POTENTIAL WITH ONGC

NEW DELHI - Four Indian states, including Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat, have applied to set up special petroleum and chemical investment hubs in their states, most of them listing Oil and Natural Gas Corp (BSE:500312) as the key investor.

ONGC's proposed Rs 260 billion (US$6.6 billion) Kakinada refinery and an adjacent Rs 50 billion polyprophylene unit will be anchor investments for the Petroleum, Chemical and Petrochemical Investment Region (PCPIR) proposed by Andhra Pradesh between Visakhapatnam and Kakinada, official sources said.

16 AFGHANI VILLAGES ELECTRIFIED BY SOLAR ENERGY IN BADAKHSHAN

FAIZABAD - Around 12,00 families in 16 suburbs of the distant northeastern Badakhshan province were provided with US$600,000 Indian-funded solar system power supply scheme to brighten their houses, officials said on Monday.

Engineer Nazira Badakhsh an official of the Rural Rehabilitation Department of the province talking to Pajhwok Afghan News termed the scheme as an extraordinary project.