KHARTOUM, July 24 (Xinhua) -- Sudan and Russia on Tuesday signed an agreement for exploration of natural gas in the regional water of the Red Sea in eastern Sudan.

The deal was signed by Sudan's Undersecretary of Oil and Gas Ministry, Bakheet Ahmed Abdalla, and Sergey Panov, chairman of the Russian exploration services company Rosgeologia.

Sudan's Oil and Gas Minister Azhari Abdul-Ghader said in a statement that the government has adopted steps to facilitate investment in gas exploration in the Red Sea.

He added that similar steps have been taken in central, northern and southern Sudan besides establishment of an oil refinery in Port Sudan.

Dmitry Kobylkin, Russian Minister of Natural Resources, also attended the signing, and reiterated willingness of the Russian companies to work in Sudan based on the studies prepared by Russian experts.

Kobylkin, who is currently visiting Sudan with a Russian delegation, met on Monday with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir.