Muscat – Oman Investment Authority (OIA) has launched four major industrial projects in the first month of the sultanate’s 11th Five-Year Plan, translating national priorities into tangible investments that advance economic diversification, strengthen local content and accelerate technology localisation.

Spanning manufacturing, tourism and the digital economy, the projects reinforce OIA’s focus on manufacturing industries as a key engine of Vision 2040, supported by global partnerships and investments through its subsidiaries.

Among the flagship initiatives is the fully financed United Solar project, backed by Future Fund Oman (FFO), to establish a state-of-the-art polysilicon production facility in Sohar Free Zone. With an investment of RO700mn, it ranks among the region’s biggest renewable energy industrial investments.

A joint financing agreement has been signed between United Solar Polysilicon Company, International Finance Corporation and a consortium of regional and local banks for the project, which is set to position Oman within the global solar supply chain, localise advanced technologies and create 1,012 direct jobs across engineering, manufacturing and clean energy services.

In maritime manufacturing, ASYAD Group has launched a project for the first fully constructed tugboat in Oman under a tripartite agreement involving ASYAD Drydock, Oman LNG and global maritime firm Svitzer. About 50% local content is targeted in the project, with job creation expected across supply chains and port services. The initiative also aims to transfer technical expertise to Omani talent and strengthen the sultanate’s position as a regional logistics and marine services hub.

Hisham Ahmed al Sheedi, Chief Investment Officer – Economic Diversification Investments at OIA, said the projects mark “a new chapter” in developing the authority’s National Development Fund, focusing on synergies among subsidiaries, job creation and technology localisation in support of Vision 2040.

In petrochemicals, OQ Refineries and Petrochemical Industries signed an MoU with Germany’s MAK Group to establish an integrated PTA and PET complex in Sohar Free Zone. With an investment exceeding RO192mn, the plant will produce 700,000 tonnes of PTA and PET and 425,000 tonnes of para-xylene annually, creating around 700 direct jobs while reducing imports and supporting SMEs.

The fourth project will see OQ Base Industries developing a specialised chemicals facility in Salalah Free Zone in partnership with Deepak Fertilisers and Petrochemicals Corp Ltd from India. The RO38mn plant will produce sodium nitrate and sodium nitrite for pharmaceuticals and fertilisers, with capacity of up to 70,000 tonnes per year and 150 direct jobs.

Together, the projects underline OIA’s role in advancing the 11th Five-Year Plan, boosting non-oil sectors and reinforcing Oman’s ambitions to become a regional hub for advanced manufacturing and industrial services.