Oman targets 11 PPP projects for implementation in 2024

Oman targets 11 PPP projects for implementation in 2024

MUSCAT: The Omani government has announced plans to progress the implementation of as many as 11 sizable projects and initiatives under its strategic Public-Private Partnership (PPP) programme during 2024.

The projects in question, outlined in the 2024 State Budget, span several sectors, including Transport & Logistics, Health, Education, Agriculture and Fisheries, Construction and Information & Communications Technology (ICT).

A key initiative set to make headway this year is the Salalah – Thamrait Truck Road project, a competitive tender for which is already underway in cooperation with the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology. Five international companies have been shortlisted to bid for a concession to design, construct, finance, operate and maintain the proposed 67 km long blacktop connecting Thamrait with the Port of Salalah in Dhofar Governorate. The first-of-its-kind carriageway, designed to cater to heavy trucks, is envisaged to operate on a toll system.

Also included in the PPP pipeline is a plan for private-led investment in a road project linking Al Maabela in Muscat Governorate with Thamid in the Wilayat of Bidbid in Al Dakhiliyah Governorate, according to the Ministry of Finance.

In the Health Sector, the Finance Ministry is seeking to tap private investment and expertise in the “management, operation and