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Muscat waterfront. Oman's budget surplus was down to an 'increase in government investments', said the state news agency

Oman posts $220m budget surplus in January 

Oman’s budget surplus reached nearly a quarter of a billion dollars in January, helped by public income from state investments, according to its state-owned news agency.  The surplus was OR85 million ($220 million) by the end of January, down just over 40 percent on the OR145 million surplus registered in the same month of 2023, […]

Executives at the foundation-stone ceremony for United Solar Polysilicon's factory in Sohar

Oman closer to solar goal with new Sohar factory

United Solar Polysilicon has started work on a $1.3 billion polysilicon factory in Oman’s Sohar Port and Freezone, believed to be the first of its kind in the Middle East. Polysilicon, a high-purity form of silicon, is a key raw material in the production of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels. Operations at the 160,000-square-metre Sohar factory […]

European tourists were second only to Omani natives in terms of hotel guests in January

Hotels and airports profit from Oman’s rise in visitors

Revenues for hotel operators in Oman rose by 17 percent to OR25 million ($64 million) in January as passenger numbers through the sultanate’s airports increased by more than one-fifth. Oman welcomed more than 1.4 million people through its main airports in Muscat, Salalah, Sohar and Duqm, according to data from the National Centre for Statistics […]

Lauren James of Chelsea FC celebrates a goal against Manchester City in the FA Women's League Cup semi-final. Oman Air is absent from the list of sponsors on the club's website

Oman Air and Chelsea FC ‘terminate sponsorship deal’

A sponsorship deal between Oman Air and English Premier League club Chelsea FC has reportedly been terminated less than a year after it was signed. The three-year agreement was believed to be worth about £2 million ($2.5 million) a year and was announced last July. The partnership, which made the flag carrier the club’s global […]

Oman has 14 space projects planned, including a public satellite

Oman’s growing space sector attracts $52m in investments

Oman has attracted investments worth OMR20 million ($52 million) in its growing space sector over the past two years, a senior government official said. The investments have increased after the issuance of the executive space programme last year, Dr. Ali Al Shidhani, under-secretary of communications and IT at the ministry of transport, communications, and information […]

The development by Al Fayha is the second mixed-use development announced for Muscat in a matter of days

Omani developer reveals Muscat mixed-use project

The Omani developer Al Fayha United Development company has launched a 13,000 square metre mixed-use project in Muscat. The Smart Home project in Al Ghala Heights, opposite Madinat Al Irfan, will include an apartment building comprising nine floors and a penthouse. Sheikh Saud bin Hamad al Ta’i, chairman of Al Faiha Development Company, said residential […]

Tawoos will develop two towers as part of the Al Khuwair Downtown Project that is intended to transform Muscat

Omani contractor signs tower deal for billion-dollar project 

Omani conglomerate Tawoos Group has signed a deal to build two mixed-use towers within the sultanate’s billion-dollar Al Khuwair Downtown Project. The project in the Muscat governorate has raised $1.3 billion in investments, according to a report from the Oman Observer, and covers an area of 3.6 million square metres. Tawoos Group will be responsible […]

Oman's Rakiza will partner with Engie, a French utility major, which owns 60% of Tihama Power

Oman’s Rakiza buys 40% of Saudi power company 

Oman’s state-owned infrastructure investor Rakiza has secured the financial close of its first transaction in Saudi Arabia by acquiring 40 percent of Tihama Power Generation Company. Tihama comprises four combined heat and power plants located at Ras Tanura, Ju’aymah, Shedgum and Uthmaniyah in the kingdom’s eastern province. The four plants produce 1,600 megawatts of electrical […]

The Muscat metro project aims to stimulate investment and improve infrastructure

Study on $2.6bn Muscat metro to finish this year

Oman’s transport minister has confirmed that consultancy studies on the $2.6 billion Muscat metro project are expected to be completed by the end of the year. “The ongoing studies concerning the Muscat Metro are on track for completion by the end of this year,” Times of Oman reported, citing Saeed bin Hamoud bin Saeed Al […]

The increase in onion prices was caused by 'floods affecting production in India and some Asian countries' said Oman

Onion prices surge 300% in Oman

Onion prices have increased by 300 percent in Oman, primarily due to a ban on exports from India, according to a local media report. Prices rose from 0.14 baisas ($0.36 cents) per kilogramme in 2023 to 0.47 baisas per kilogramme in December of 2023, before surging to 0.6 baisas per kilogramme by mid-February 2024, the […]

Oman Air is to make changes to its board and executive management team

Oman Air 2023 losses down 25% on higher ticket sales

State-owned Oman Air cut its losses by a quarter in 2023 as it streamlined expenditure and improved ticket sales, chairman Said Hamoud Al Ma’awali said. The airline is expected to see “good growth” in its financial performance by 2026 under its four-year transformation plan, state-run Oman News Agency reported, citing the top executive. No other […]

Donald Trump draws crowds on the campaign trail in Conway, South Carolina; meanwhile his brand is a bonus in the Gulf

Trump still has ‘big pull’ for $2m branded villas in Oman

Donald Trump may be facing criminal investigations in the US, but the 45th president’s brand continues to wield substantial influence in the Gulf. Last week there were more than 100 expressions of interest in a launch of 20 Trump-branded villas in Oman, within 24 hours, according to the project’s developer. “Trump as a brand still […]

Architecture, Building, Factory

Oman-Kuwait JV to open $9bn crude oil refinery 

The $9 billion OQ8 crude oil refinery, which has a daily capacity of 230,000 barrels, will be inaugurated on Wednesday. The refinery has been developed by Duqm Refinery and Petrochemical Industries, a joint venture between Oman’s OQ Group and state-run Kuwait Petroleum International. It is the largest joint investment in the petrochemical and refinery industry between […]

Oman hotel restrictions Omani women enjoy the sea view from a hotel lobby in the newly developed property, Al Mouj Muscat

Oman hotel licence limits signal ‘desire to enhance quality’

The decision by Oman to impose restrictions on new hotel developments across the sultanate demonstrates a focus on quality over quantity, an industry analyst says. From February 1, Oman’s Ministry of Heritage and Tourism will not accept any requests for new hotels in the Muscat governorate, aside from Quriyat and Al Amerat. Applications for hotel […]

Green Data City CEO Olivier Ohnheiser and Sohar Freezone CEO Omar Mahmood Al Mahrizi sign the agreement for a data mining centre

Oman invests $210m in Sohar data centre project

Oman’s Sohar Port and Freezone has signed a land-lease agreement with Green Data City to develop a data computing centre. The facility aims to provide hosting, processing and data mining in the free zone, reported the state-owned Oman News Agency. Green Data City is a data miner, which means using computers and automation to search […]

A Polymetal gold smelter in Varvara, Kazakhstan. The company is a top 10 gold miner.

Oman consortium buys stake in gold and silver miner

Oman’s Maaden International Investment has acquired almost a quarter of the Anglo-Russian gold and silver producer Polymetal International. The 23.9 percent stake was bought for an undisclosed sum from Powerboom Investments, a subsidiary of ICT Holding, which is owned by the Russian businessman Alexander Nesis. Polymetal was founded by Nesis in 1998. It is among […]

Oman's oil and gas industry received the majority of investments, accounting for 52.8%of total FDI

UK leads Oman’s FDI growth of 27% to nearly $13bn

Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Oman rose 26.6 percent year on year to OR4.8 billion ($12.6 billion) in the third quarter of 2023. The United Kingdom emerged as the leading contributor to FDI, injecting OR2.4 billion ($6.2 billion), Oman Daily Observer news outlet reported, citing data from the National Centre for Statistics and Information. The […]

Bank Muscat led the rankings with a net profit of OMR212.4 million, up from OMR200.7 million in 2022

Profit of Omani-listed banks rises 19% to $1.17bn in 2023

Omani banks listed on the Muscat Stock Exchange (MSX) recorded net profits of OMR453.5 million ($1.17 billion) in 2023, an annual increase of 18.6 percent. The preliminary financial results showed that all seven banks listed on the stock exchange posted higher profits, the state-run Oman News Agency reported. Bank Muscat led the rankings with a […]

Oman Air has revised flight timings for several destinations, to maximise connection windows

Oman Air cancels flights to South Asian cities

Oman Air is cancelling flights to some South Asian cities as part of its transformation programme. The state-owned airline said the move is part of efforts to improve its financial performance and strengthen its position in a competitive market. Flights to Islamabad and Lahore in Pakistan, Colombo in Sri Lanka and Chittagong in Bangladesh will […]

Muscat airport passenger traffic climbs 19%

Passenger traffic at Muscat International Airport rose to 1.19 million in December 2023, a 19 percent rise compared to 999,935 a year ago. Aircraft movement increased 15 percent year on year to 9,233, Oman Daily Observer reported, citing data from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). Freight movement at Muscat airport moved up 0.4 percent annually […]

oman tourism, oman ratings, oman

Oman expects a ratings rebound but oil’s grip is strong

Oman is on course to regain its investment-grade rating but analysts say challenges remain in reducing the economy’s dependence on hydrocarbons. Standard Chartered has forecast that Oman’s continued improvements in fiscal performance, de-leveraging (lowering debt) and commitment to reform could see the sultanate’s rating rebound “as early as 2024”. The bank’s Global Focus 2024 report […]