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: December 24, 2025

Recent projects

Gateway House (2) Courtesy: Gateway House
24 December 2025 Gateway House

Bangladesh economy spirals downwards

Bangladesh’s economy, already weak at the time of the August 2024 coup, has been on a downward spiral since. Banks are insolvent and cannot lend, business confidence is low, and investors are staying out. These issues will worsen the ongoing radicalisation, extremism and violence in the country. 
Gateway House Courtesy: Telegrafi
6 November 2025

U.S. Sanctions on Russian oil giants

On October 22, 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump imposed sanctions on Russia’s oil giants, Rosneft and Lukoil. The move has clear geopolitical motives—to remove a major supplier from an oversupplied oil market. Indian oil companies, key buyers of Russian crude, now face pressure to cut imports, undermining India’s energy diversification and shaking global oil markets, including the U.S. economy.
shutterstockAllahfoto Courtesy: shutterstock / Allahfoto
17 July 2025 Gateway House

EVs to Hydrogen?

The embargo on rare-earth magnets by China reflects a gap in India’s critical mineral supply chain. India should reduce the need for these minerals by promoting green hydrogen.
New Spotlight Magazine Courtesy: New Spotlight Magazine
19 June 2025 Gateway House

A case for South Asia energy connectivity

Building a robust engagement with India on energy can help offset some of the economic and political crises that most of India’s neighbours are facing. Smaller South Asian neighbours will benefit from cheaper electricity and oil, paving the way for greater regional economic cooperation.
IMEC map with source Courtesy: Gateway House
11 June 2025 Gateway House

IMEC: more than just a corridor

The proposed IMEC corridor connecting India to Europe through the Gulf can be transformative, helping to reduce risks to the global movement of goods and data. It’s early days yet, and there are gaps to be filled in terms of missing infrastructure and overcoming a diplomatic rift.
Getty (1) Courtesy: Gateway House
15 May 2025 Gateway House

The New Geopolitics and South Asia’s Trade Architecture – What Next?

Geopolitics is increasingly intertwined with the economic destiny of South Asia. Even before the U.S. tariffs were rolled out, growing polycrises had hit the global economy, which has been struggling since the pandemic. South Asia seems a relatively bright spark of regional trade and growth. This paper analyses South Asia’s trade architecture in the backdrop of a sluggish world economy in the 2020s, and makes recommendations for closer regional economic integration.
10_Bild10L_Evraz_KGOK2L-ironore-7ad449a79aa2d734 Courtesy: Evraz
10 April 2025 Gateway House

A changed India-Russia equation

Three years into the war with Ukraine, Russia has adapted to the changed economic scenario. It’s an ideal time for India and Russia to step up their economic engagement, especially as India seeks resources in energy and critical minerals for growth. However, Indian companies are wary of using these opportunities and are missing out on access to the world’s larges and most mineral-rich region.
Turkstreampipe Courtesy: President of Russia-Events website
30 January 2025 The Indian Express

LNG: winners and victims

Europe has reduced its reliance on Russian gas following the war in Ukraine, and its chief supplier Russia is mired in western sanctions. What does it mean for Russia? It has certainly changed the fortunes for American gas to be sold to Europe: as of 2023, the US had become the world’s top exporter of gas.