"We are meeting him (Russian President Vladimir Putin) separately and jointly together tomorrow at 4 o'clock in Hyderabad House. He knows what we want. Our demand is to help us to give partnership or block sharing or some way in Sakhalin-3, there so much oil and so much gas is available. From Sakhalin- 1 partnership, we have already got the gas, already got the petrol, crude petrol, which was presented in Mangalore," Deora told reporters on the sidelines of the opening of state-run Indraprastha Gas Limited's new headquarters.

On Monday, Russia's Itar-Tass news agency quoted Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov, presently in India, as saying that Russia wanted Indian companies to invest in Sakhalin-3.

Moscow is "interested in the participation of Indian capital in the development of the ... project," Tass quoted Ivanov, who is also a deputy prime minister, as saying.

He also said Indian firms could invest in the Vankor field in Siberia.

U.S. majors Exxon Mobil and Chevron were part of a consortium, which won a preliminary bid to develop the big Sakhalin-3 field, off Russia's Pacific coast.

But that consortium was dissolved and Russia is seeking to re-auction the deposit.

Russia has awarded rights to develop smaller fields within Sakhalin-3.

A consortium of China's Sinopec and Russia's state-owned Rosneft has started exploratory drilling on one of those smaller fields.

India's state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) agreed few years ago to buy 20 percent of Sakhalin-1, a 17-billion-dollar oil and gas development led by Exxon Mobil and involving Rosneft.

Russian media have reported the inclusion of ONGC in Sakhalin-1 was part of a broader agreement involving a multi-billion-dollar deal to supply Russian weapons to India, though this has never been confirmed.

Vankor, operated by Rosneft in eastern Siberia, has estimated reserves of 2.5 billion barrels.

In December last year, ONGC had brought home the first shipment of crude oil from Sakhalin 1 oil fields at the southern port city of Mangalore.

Oil tanker, MV Viktoritov carrying 7, 00,000 barrel's of crude oil, was formally received by Deora.