US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday visited Reliance Industries’ sprawling Jamnagar complex, underscoring Washington’s efforts to deepen energy ties with India as the Trump administration seeks greater access to India’s refining capacity, higher purchases of US energy and increased investments by Indian companies in the US.Rubio, accompanied by his wife, Jeanette Dousdebes Rubio, toured the world’s largest single-site oil-refining complex, the Vantara wildlife rescue and conservation centre and Reliance’s emerging clean-energy manufacturing hub, people familiar with the visit said. He spent a few hours in Jamnagar before departing for the US.Earlier, Rubio told Reliance-owned Network18 that Washington wanted to work more closely with Reliance on refining energy from the Western Hemisphere, describing such cooperation as beneficial to both countries.Reliance’s Jamnagar complex can process about 1.4 million barrels of crude oil a day and is a major supplier of diesel and other refined products to global markets. Its ability to process a wide range of crude grades makes it strategically important as Washington seeks to encourage more Indian purchases of Venezuelan oil.Almost the entire Ambani family, led by billionaire Reliance chairman Mukesh Ambani, welcomed the US delegation. Those present included his wife Nita Ambani, daughter Isha Ambani and her husband Anand Piramal, and younger son Anant Ambani and his wife Radhika Merchant, along with Reliance Industries executive director PMS Prasad and US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor.Akash Ambani, Mukesh Ambani’s eldest son and managing director of Jio Platforms, was overseeing the opening of the telecom giant’s IPO.Rubio arrived in Jamnagar a day after describing India as a crude-refining “superpower” and urging it to process more Venezuelan oil. Officials have described the Ambani-hosted programme as a “private visit”, and neither side released details of the itinerary.The visit comes as Washington seeks to increase sales of American energy to India, encourage the processing of Western Hemisphere crude and strengthen commercial ties with Reliance, a major buyer of internationally traded oil and a leading exporter of refined fuels.It also coincides with pressure on US diesel prices ahead of the midterm elections.In a post on X, Gor said India’s imports of US liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) had risen sharply over the past year, with the US now accounting for 67 per cent of India’s LPG imports, up from less than 10 per cent.Gor added that Reliance’s planned investment in the first new oil refinery in the US in 50 years presented another opportunity to expand American energy production and create jobs.