Oxford Business Group and OPAZ team up for latest focus report
Pravasii samwad.com
Muscat: A new focus report, produced by Oxford Business Group (OBG) in partnership with Oman’s Public Authority for Special Economic Zones and Free Zones (OPAZ) and Centralized Utilities Company, Marafiq, shines a spotlight on investment opportunities opening up in industry, logistics and energy as efforts to diversify the economy intensify.
The analysis explores the developments taking place at the sultanate’s special economic zones and free zones in an easy-to-navigate and accessible format, supported by key data and infographics.
It provides detailed coverage of the way in which fiscal incentives, infrastructure projects and robust connectivity to external markets are combining to attract businesses to OPAZ-affiliated zones.
The rollout of advanced transport infrastructure is a particular focal point. In this section, the report considers the part that new facilities and services, such as digitalised logistics infrastructure, have played in boosting Oman’s trade capacity and enabling companies to efficiently transport goods, both internally and farther afield.
Oman’s drive to encourage value-added production and downstream processing at OPAZ-affiliated zones, while harnessing the country’s abundant hydrocarbon resources to support businesses in these segments, is also mapped out.
In addition, the report highlights the opportunities emerging in renewable energy and green hydrogen, as the sultanate works towards reaching its target to be a net-zero economy by 2050.
It also shines a spotlight on OPAZ’s growth story, tracking the milestones reached and their close alignment with the objectives laid out in Oman’s Vision 2040 roadmap for economic diversification and sustainable development.
The report includes a wide-ranging interview with Ali bin Masoud Al Sunaidy, Chairman, OPAZ, in which he explains how Oman’s strengths, including its geographical position, are supporting efforts to attract foreign direct investment and drive industrial growth.
“As a link between east and west, Oman’s strategic location in the global supply chain is beneficial for investors, thanks in part to its proximity to shipping lanes that are home to the majority of the world’s commercial maritime traffic,” he said. “OPAZ aims to eliminate barriers to investment and boost the efficiency of industrial zones.”
Jana Treeck, OBG’s Managing Director for the Middle East, said a combination of rising energy prices, far-reaching structural reforms and higher oil and gas production had put Oman on track for a strong post-pandemic recovery, with the non-oil sector well placed to increase its contribution to growth.
“Industrial expansion is at the heart of Oman’s efforts to diversify its economy, as is evident from the business-friendly policies being introduced and the many projects under way aimed at expanding industrial capacity,” Treeck said. “Special economic zones and free zones have an important role to play in attracting foreign investment, boosting exports and creating jobs, all of which will produce ripple effects through the economy and help the sultanate to achieve its long-term objectives.”
In addition, the report highlights the opportunities emerging in renewable energy and green hydrogen, as the sultanate works towards reaching its target to be a net-zero economy by 2050.
Dana Carmen Agarbicean, Country Director, Oxford Business Group, said the report also highlighted the many investment opportunities emerging in logistics at OPAZ-affiliated zones.
“Disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and geopolitical disputes have prompted Oman to sharpen its focus on trade regionalisation, with the result that several major collaborative projects are taking shape across the special economic and free zones, including state-of-the art port and logistics facilities,” she said.
“These ventures will pave the way for Oman to position itself as a cargo and transhipment hub, while enabling the sultanate to further capitalise on its strategic location en route to emerging markets in Africa and Asia.”
Abdullah Mohammed Al-Hashimi, Managing Director, Centralized Utilities Company, Marafiq, said that “Oman is focusing on boosting efficiencies in the use of water and electricity in special economic and free zones. This is creating significant opportunities for investments in technology throughout the entire value chain, as well as projects in renewable energy and hydrogen as Vision 2040 drives change across the economy”. ‘’Marafiq is well positioned to deliver national strategic objectives,” he added.
The report on Oman’s special economic zones and free zones forms part of a series of tailored studies that OBG is currently producing with its partners, including ESG Intelligence and Future Readiness reports, and other highly relevant, go-to research tools, such as country-specific Growth and Recovery Outlook articles and interviews.
About Oxford Business Group
Oxford Business Group (OBG) is a global research and advisory company with a presence in over 30 countries, spanning the Middle East, Africa, Asia and the Americas. It is recognised internationally as a distinctive and respected provider of on-the-ground intelligence on world’s fastest-growing markets, termed The Yellow Slice, in reference to OBG’s corporate colour.
Through its range of products – Economic News and Views; OBG CEO Surveys; OBG Events and Conferences; Global Platform, which hosts exclusive video interviews; and The Report publications – as well as its Advisory division, OBG offers comprehensive and accurate analysis of macroeconomic and sector-level developments for sound investment opportunities and business decisions.
OBG provides business intelligence to its subscribers through multiple platforms, including its direct 6 million verified subscribers, Dow Jones Factiva subscribers, the Bloomberg Professional Services subscribers, Refinitiv’s (previously Thomson Reuters) Eikon subscribers and more.
***************************************************************
Readers
These are extraordinary times. All of us have to rely on high-impact, trustworthy journalism. And this is especially true of the Indian Diaspora. Members of the Indian community overseas cannot be fed with inaccurate news.
Pravasi Samwad is a venture that has no shareholders. It is the result of an impassioned initiative of a handful of Indian journalists spread around the world. We have taken the small step forward with the pledge to provide news with accuracy, free from political and commercial influence. Our aim is to keep you, our readers, informed about developments at ‘home’ and across the world that affect you.
Please help us to keep our journalism independent and free.
In these difficult times, to run a news website requires finances. While every contribution, big or small, will makes a difference, we request our readers to put us in touch with advertisers worldwide. It will be a great help.
For more information: pravasisamwad00@gmail.com