Oman opportunities

Weekly News
Oman
Opportunities
26 ~ 30 March 2017
Telegram: https://t.me/omanme

Duqm’s
Renaissance
Village set up to
feed thousands of
workers
Oman's
polypropylene
plant to raise
capacity to
340,000 tonnes per
annum
Oman could
overcome fiscal
challenges with
diversification:
Moody's report
Duqm free zone
completes 16 per
cent work
Oman to cut crude
supplies to Asia
by 15 per cent
Oman tourism:
Water bus service
launched in
Khasab
Oman delegation
looks to expand
trade links with
South Africa
Duqm: Oman’s first Wi-Fi friendly work camp
called the Renaissance Village in Duqm is
capable of accommodating a total of 16,200
workers, and provisions have also been made to
ensurethey’refedhealthymealsontime.
Nestled within the Village’s kitchens–one of the
largest in Oman–are chapatti makers capable of
churning out 1,000 chapattis an hour. “We want
to provide the workers who will come here
healthy and nutritious meals so that they can
work at their optimum best,” said Stephen
Thomas, chief executive officer at Renaissance
Village.
“When they come here, all of their needs are
taken care of.We also have a conveyor belt line to
pack meals and send them to workers in the field,
and should any other company request us for
food, we certainly won’t turn them away because
thatis somethingwe’relookingatinthefuture.”
Built at a cost of OMR75 million, construction of
the Renaissance Village began in 2014 and took
30monthstocomplete.
With rooms for labourers, entry-level
employees, management and senior staff that
range from six-bed and four-bed dormitories to
two-man shared accommodation, single rooms,
and suites for senior staff, the complex was built
in anticipation of the large influx of manpower
Duqm will receive when construction and
economic projects under the Special Economic
Zone Authority of Duqm (SEZAD) kick into
high gear, with the government of Oman looking
to diversify its economy by 2020, under the
Sultanate’sTanfeedhregulations.
Duqm: Duqm free zone has completed 16 per
cent of the ninth five-year infrastructure projects,
a senior official said. The five year plab is
between2016and2020.
HusseinAl Zadjali, head of the Building Projects
Department at the Special Economic Zone
Authority of Duqm (Sezad ), added that Sezad is
working on the completion of infrastructure
projects during the period set for them, pointing
out that 48 per cent of these projects are currently
being implemented, while 16 per cent are in the
bidding stage and 7 per cent are in the operation
and maintenance phase, in addition to 13 per cent
that are in the stage of preparation for work
volumeandbiddingequipment.
He was providing an update to local English-
speaking media representatives during their visit
toDuqm.
He pointed out that the estimated cost of these
projects exceeds OMR700 million, adding that
these projects will include completion of the
remaining packages of the infrastructure projects
for the Port of Duqm. It also includes the
establishment of marine works for the fishing
harbour, as well as a number of major and
auxiliaryroads,lightingandotherprojects.
Representatives of the media visited a number of
economic projects as part of a tour organised by
Sezad to familiarise them with the projects being
implementedintheregion.
Muscat: Oman Refineries and Petroleum
Industries Company (Orpic) said that the
capacity of its polypropylene plant will be raised
to 340,000 tonnes of high quality polypropylene
perannumfrom200,000tonnesayearnow.
This is considered an achievement for the
company, whichstartedoperationsin2006.
Faisal Al Hajri, Orpic's regional sales manager
for Middle East, Africa and Europe, said the
plant, which is the only one of its kind in the
Sultanate, now produces 200,000 tonnes of
polypropylene.The plant is part of the
government's vision to develop the
petrochemical industry. The Sohar Refinery of
Orpic is the main supplier of raw materials used
in the production of polypropylene. It is also a
key component in the building of an integrated
local petrochemical industry. It is also part of the
efforts made by the Sultanate to diversify
sources of national income and benefit from gas
production.Orpic markets the product under the
brand name 'Luban,' the most renowned Omani
product for export in ancient times. The
production, which ranges between very soft
material and granules, is exported to 91 ports in
more than 63 countries, including the Gulf
Cooperation Council states, India, Pakistan, Sri
Lanka, Bangladesh, Middle East and North
Africa countries, China, Vietnam, Peru, South
Korea, Myanmar, the Philippines and South
Africa.Luban is used in the production of plastic
chairs, tables, carpets, packing materials, ropes,
caps, packing straps and other electrical and
home appliances. Al Hajri added that the
production currently meets 90 per cent of the
Sultanate's needs. Orpic seeks to develop the
plastics industry in the Sultanate and double its
profits by benefiting from the growing demand
forplastic.
Muscat: High per capita income and a strong
government will boost a robust economic
outlook and help Oman remain resilient in tough
financial situation, according to Annual Credit
Analysis byMoody’s.
Oman is rated Baa1 by Moody’s which
represents secure investing in the country and its
high ability to pay off debts. The stable outlook
illustrates the anticipated resilience of Oman’s
rating over the next 12-18 months and signals
the balance between upward and downward
pressure ontheeconomy.
“Oman’s Baa1 rating with stable outlook
reflects its high wealth levels and a still
comparatively strong government balance
sheet, balanced against credit challenges,
including its heavy reliance of oil and gas
sector,”Moody’s InvestorServicereportsaid.
According to the report, positive signs for the
Sultanate would stem from faster than expected
progress in containing government fiscal
deficits and diversifying the economy away
fromoilandgas.
“Although we expect government debt to rise to
Muscat: A bus that can operate on roads, as well
asinwater,has begunserviceinKhasab.
Abdul Rahman Ahmed Almulla, General
Manager of Golden Coast Travel and Tourism
Company, said the vehicle, which moves on
water and drives on land, will cater to tourists
visitingtheportcity.
Khasab, located on the tip of Musandam
Peninsula in northern Oman, draws a large
number domestic as well as foreign tourists,
especially from the UAE and other
neighbouringcountries.
“We are charging OMR10 for adults and OMR5
for children above two years, to experience this
trip,”hesaid.
Known as the Norway ofArabia, the Musandam
Peninsula, where mountains appear on the
horizon at the edge of the sea, is located 570
kilometresfromMuscat.
One half of the 90-minute water bus trip is on the
road and the other half in water. The vehicle was
imported from a European city and the service
launchedinKhasab thismonth.
“It can seat 34 passengers (excluding the staff),
and can travel 100 kilometres per hour on roads
and7knots inwater,”hesaid.
40 per cent of GDP by 2018 from less than 5 per
cent at the start of oil price shock, Oman’s fiscal
buffers will support the country through its
process of fiscal and external adjustments,”
Steffen Dyck, Senior Credit Officer at Moody’s
andco-authorofthereportsaid.
Muscat: Oman will cut crude oil exports to Asia
by 15 per cent to meet local demand, the
MinistryofOilandGas said.
The supply cuts are expected to begin from June
this year and will partly account for the 45,000
barrels per day promised to be slashed by Oman
as a part of production cut agreementwith OPEC
members.
“The Ministry of Oil and Gas has informed its
customers on contract in Asia that it will reduce
supply by 15 per cent starting in June. The
supply cut is to meet rising demand at the state
owned Sohar Refinery,” an official from the
Ministryof OilandGas confirmedwithTimesof
Oman.
Majorrecipient
China is the major recipient of Omani crude with
around 90 per cent crude exports from the
Sultanate reaching Chinese ports and is likely to
be the most affected by this; however, no official
statement has been made regarding buyers or
countriesthatwillbeaffectedduetothis.
Oman’s rising domestic demand comes from a
surge of petroleum industries including the
multibillion dollar Sohar Refinery Improvement
Project that is ready to boost refined product
output by 4.2 million tonnes a year to 13 million
tonnesayear.
The improvement project by Orpic is likely to
increase the manufacturing share of the gross
domestic product as it will reduce naphtha
purchases and produce bitumen, mainly used to
manufacture asphalt, to cater to growing
infrastructureprojectsinthecountry.

Central banks of
Oman, Iran sign
agreement
Expat workers
branded as
‘absconders’ by
rogue firms in
Oman
Bank interest rates
in Oman rise on
tight liquidity
R e c r u i t e r s s a y
Omanisation drive
is working
Oman registers
16% growth in
tourist inflow
Ministry
introduces
guidelines for
adventure tourism
Capital Market
Authority cancels
three brokerage
licences in Oman
Johannesburg: The SouthAfrica-Oman Business
Forum opened on Monday in Sandton,
Johannesburg, where both countries said they
werelookingatways ofexpandingtrade.
Oman Commerce and Industry minister Dr. Ali
bin MasoudAl Sunaidi, who was well received in
South Africa, told a media briefing that his
country was moving away from a reliance on oil
exports.
Al Sunaidi, said Oman was looking forward to
knowledgesharingandjointinvestments.
“We are a net importer of food, part of our
discussion here were as a result of Oman creating
a state holding company for red and white meat,"
said the Omani minister, who was accompanied
byabusiness delegation.
Oman's business delegation will also hold talks
with their South African counterparts during the
two-daybusiness forum.
Oman was historically dependent on oil, while
SouthAfrica’s economyreliedonminerals.
"Because we have water scarcity, this
interactions allows us to think of cooperation on
food production. Seasons in Asia are totally
different from the ones here ... we hope we could
complement each other in that sphere,” said Al
Sunaidi.
Muscat: Oman attracted more than 3 million
visitors in 2016, according to the annual report of
theMinistryofTourism.
According to the report, 3,042,695 tourists
visited the Sultanate last year, 16.2 per cent more
than than the previous year’s number. The
growth is based on a well-established and
continuous development of infrastructure, in
addition to projects that boost the tourist
attractionpotentialoftheSultanate.
The highest growth rate of visitors came through
the cruise ships, where 217,153 tourists last year
visited the Sultanate on board of these ships,
compared to 147,858 tourists, an increase of 46.9
percent.
The Salalah Khareef Season attracted 652,986
tourists last year, up 26.8 per cent from the
previous year, while castles and forts attracted
284,725 visitors, an increase of 14.3 per cent.
The number of visitors to Al Jabal Al Akhdhar
was 162,499,anincreaseof0.3percent.
Water ponds in Wadi Bani Khalid attracted
156,119 visitors, up 38.3 per cent, while the Ras
Al Ginz Turtle Reserve was visited by 36,070
visitors, an increase of 17.3 per cent. The number
of hotel establishments reached 337 last year
compared to 318 in 2015 with a growth rate of 6
percent.
Muscat: More than 80 per cent of all job
vacancies currently posted in Oman are for
Omanis only, according to recruitment agencies,
as nationals begin to reap the fruits of a
governmentOmanisationdrive.
Data from past two years shows that nationals are
being hunted by recruiters as companies seek to
hit targets set by the government regarding
Omanistaff.
Dr. Ali bin Mas’oud Al Sunaidi, Minister of
Commerce and Industry, said recently he expects
a 35 per cent Omanisation rate in most
companies, and warned that companies that do
not meet the target will “not find a friend in the
Muscat: Oman's bank interest rates have shown a
substantial year-on-year increase due to the tight
liquiditysituationinthefinancialsystem.
According to the latest monthly statistics
released by the Central Bank of Oman, the
weighted average interest rate of rial Omani
deposits increased to 1.582 per cent in January
2017 from 0.948 per cent during the same period
last year. Also, the weighted average rial Omani
lending rate increased to 5.104 per cent, from
4.760percentduringtheperiodunderreview.
The Omani government has raised debt funds
from the domestic market by way of
development bond issues in the recent past to
partially meet the budget deficit. This year, the
government plans to raise OMR600 million,
which is to partially cover the budget deficit, as
well as to repay OMR200 million towards a
maturing bond. Subsequently, the net local
borrowing is estimated at OMR400 million, and
another OMR2.1 billion in funding will come by
way of external borrowing from overseas
markets to meet the projected deficit of OMR3
billion.
This is expected to put pressure on the liquidity
within the financial system, in general, and the
banking sector, in particular. However, a major
portion of the debt fund was raised from the
overseas market, which provided relief to the
domesticfinancialmarket.
The overall deposits for financial institutions in
Oman was OMR20.6 billion, as of the end of
January, registering a growth of 6.7 per cent over
the same period last year. Private sector deposits
in the banking system rose by 5.3 per cent to
OMR13.4 billion by the end of January,
according to the latest monthly report released by
theCentralBankofOman.
However, the total credit extended by Omani
banks, including Islamic financial institutions,
grew by 8.9 per cent year-on-year to OMR22.1
billionasoftheendofJanuarythisyear.
Credit to the private sector alone increased by
10.6 per cent to OMR19.9 billion by the end of
January,thereportnoted.
Muscat: Some rogue company bosses are
reportedly abusing the absconding worker
system for expatriate workers, say victims,
communityleadersandlegaladvisors.
Under the system, employers in Oman can file
an absconding case against an employee if he or
she fails to turn up for work without giving any
formal notice. If an employer has to file an
absconding case, he has to approach the
authorities, including police. However,
community leaders and legal experts say that
some companies are misusing the system to
dump workers or to avoid paying overdue
salaries.
AH Raja, Vice-Chairman of Pakistan Social
Club, said some sponsors are declaring their
workers absconding if the workers ask for
pendingsalaries.
“Some small companies are finding it hard to
pay the salaries, and when the workers start to
demand the pending salaries, the companies will
start filing absconding cases. We are getting
these types of complaints,” the official from
PakistanSocialClubsaid.
Times of Oman has uncovered cases where the
employee was forced to approach authorities to
provethatheis notabsconding.
Suresh Kumar (name changed) an Indian
expatriate in Oman is running from pillar to post
to find out whether his company has filed an
abscondingcaseornot.
“When my company terminated me on baseless
reasons, I filed a case against them. When the
company officials were pulled up by the court,
they came for a compromise. Now, they are
Muscat: Oman’s central bank has signed a
memorandum of understanding (MoU) with its
counterpartinIran.
The MoU aims at strengthening the extensive
bilateral relations, while enhancing mutual
cooperation between the two countries. It also
aims to support and develop banking, financial
and economic operations in both the Sultanate
and Iran. In addition, the articles of the MoU
covered mutual exchanges of knowledge and
expertise relating to the banking sector, and
cooperation between the two countries in
promotingbilateralandinternationaltrade.
The MoU also made reference to efforts by both
parties to facilitate exchange visits among their
top officials, implement programmes for their
Muscat: Oman’s stock market regulator Capital
Market Authority on Sunday cancelled licences
of three brokerage firms – Al Shurooq
Securities, Tawasul Financial and Investment
ServicesandRasmalaInvestmentCompany.
These licences were cancelled after the
respective brokerage firms requested for the
same,accordingtosources atCMA.
Rasmala was taken over by the Financial
Corporation, while the other two brokerage
houses havedecidedtodiscontinueoperations.
In fact, a fall in traded volumes on the Muscat
employees and enhance training methods, while
also benefitting from associated institutions,
such as the College of Banking and Financial
StudiesintheSultanate.
bourse and other GCC markets (after a severe
drop in oil prices) has affected both revenue and
net earnings of brokerage firms. “This was in
line with the trend in GCC countries,” said a
CMAsource.
Last year, the market turnover and volume
dropped as investor participation and trading
activity witnessed significant fall. The total
turnover dipped by 31 per cent to OMR959
million in 2016 from OMR1,390 million for the
previous year. The average daily turnover for
last year was OMR3.96 million, down by 29.3
per cent from OMR5.6 million in the previous
year.
The Muscat Securities Market’s average
turnover last year was the lowest in the last eight
years. Omani investors were net buyers during
the year by 9.01 per cent in terms of value of
tradedsecurities.
With a sharp fall in traded volumes, some of the
brokerage firms were finding it difficult to
comply with the capital requirements of the
marketregulator.
ready to settle the issue but they asked a little
more time claiming that they have to remove an
“absconding case” filed against me,” Suresh
said.
Muscat: A “Risk Management and Safety in
Adventure Tourism” (RMSAT) programme has
been launched by the Ministry of Tourism to
encourage adventure sports and tourism
activitiesinthecountry.
The programme is part of one of the 15
initiatives adopted by the Ministry of Tourism
(MoT) within the national programme to
promote economic diversification, which will
be followed up by implementation support and a
follow-upunit.
The programme was launched during a
presentation prepared by the ministry in
cooperation with supportadventure.co.nz,
which is supervised by the New Zealand
Government, and Maven International
ConsultingCompany.
During the presentation, an adventure tourism
activities guide that highlights the wadis
(valleys)was alsolaunched.
The guide includes a description of adventure
tourism in wadis, the risk identification and
management process, the mechanism of
classifying wadis, the most prominent activities
that can be carried out in wadis, and how to
manage the risks, teamwork, activity
practitioners, and types of equipment, accidents,
andemergencies.

Sayyid Asa'ad to
lead Oman
delegation to Arab
Summit in Jordan
Omani companies
can register online
from August
Oman, South
Africa look to
expand trade in
foodstuffs
Privatisation,
investment banks
needed for capital
market growth:
CMA chief
Licences for
Brazil meat
importers
suspended in
Oman
MinistryofCommerceandIndustry.”
Most employers seem to have heeded the
message, according to recruiters, with an upsurge
injobsandjuniormanagementrolesforOmanis.
Arecent freeze on government jobs in Oman has
also resulted in Omanis looking for work in the
private sector, and higher quality Omani
graduates are also driving the new hiring boom,
accordingtotheexperts.
“The number of openings for Omanis has risen
dramatically in the past two years. Before that we
had nearly 50-50 available vacancies for both
Omanis and expats but now it has changed. We
can say the percentage of Omanis required by
companiesis80percentofthetotalvacancies,”
Prabhu Shankar, Assistant General Manager at
MENAHR solutionssaid.
“I think Omanis have done very well recently at
colleges and therefore more companies are
willing to hire them. We have seen a rise in job
positions for nationals from nearly equal division
two years ago to around 70 per cent applications
only for Omanis. I think both Omanisation and
quality of graduates have a role to play in this,”
Farhat Shaikh from Global Elite HR solutions
andservicessaid.
Permanent Delegate to the Arab League,
Abdullah bin Hamad Al Badi, Head of Human
Resources at the Foreign Ministry and Mubarak
bin Hamad Al Mukhaini, Head of the Arab
LeagueDepartmentattheForeignMinistry.
Smart cities
will be driven
by needs of
Oman’s
The Smart City platform is an online networking
stage where various entities, including
researchers, academicians, and government
organisations can come together to suggest the
best possible methods to develop the Muttrah
district. According to Al Shidhani, the platform
will grow and branch out to develop other cities,
such as Duqm and Sohar, where there is a
demand for smart services. “Asmart city is about
people, their lives and how it can be improved.
We can use cameras to stream traffic and find out
what is the fastest route to a place. This is an
example of technology complementing human
requirements. This is what smart cities are all
about, to improve one’s standards of living. At
Microsoft, we are very well versed with this and
have some excellent solutions that can be used in
Oman,” Ahmed Raffat, technology strategist at
Microsoft,said.
Muscat: Smart cities in Oman will be driven by
the needs of residents of the country, according to
officials at the Smart City seminar held
yesterday. Based on the concept of sustainability,
efficiency and economics, smart cities are tipped
to drive high standards of living in the Sultanate.
However, in contrast to a technologically driven
industry, Omani society is likely to embrace the
concept of smart cities through consumer
demand.
“Smart cities should and will be driven by what
the citizens need,” Dr. Ali Al Shidhani, director
of research centres and ICT at The Research
Council,said.
“We are in the early planning stages of the pilot
project with various government entities,
including the Supreme Council for Planning and
the Muscat Municipality to transform the historic
city of Muttrah. This is where people require
smarter applications to improve their standard of
living,” he said, announcing details of the Smart
Cityplatform.
Muscat: Omani companies can register
themselves online from August, officials
announced after an agreement was signed
between Data Park and the Oman Chamber of
Commerce and Industry (OCCI), which took
placeatCOMEX onTuesday.
Companies will be able to register themselves,
file complaints and have access to other e-
services after an online portal by Data Park rolls
outtheseservicesinthesecondhalfofthisyear.
“Companies will be able to register online soon.
This process used to be done manually and
required company officials to manually submit
documents," Maqbool Al Wahaibi, chief
executiveofficerofDataParkOman,said.
The process is expected to be cut short after all
necessary documents are filed on the online
portale-servicefacility.
The event also saw Data Park signing an
agreement with the Hayak Water Company to
outsource management of date. Al Wahaibi
highlighted Data Park's initiatives in supplying
information technology services to Oman and
theregion.
"We serve nearly 480 companies in Oman, both
small and large. We are providing different ERP
services to companies in Oman and the region.
We have corporates in Australia, Denmark and
SaudiArabiathatuseourfacilities,"hesaid.
"We will manage and operate their infrastructure
on their behalf.With the chamber (OCCI), we are
developing their e-services. These services are
all related to automate services that were
manuallydone,"AlWahaibiadded.
“We serve different sectors from banking to oil
and gas. This is just a part of one of our initiatives
to increase the electronic footprint of
governmentservices."
JOHANNESBURG: Dr Ali bin Masoud al
Sunaidy, Minister of Commerce and Industry,
met with Rob Davies, Minister of Trade and
Industry of SouthAfrica during his visit to South
Africa. The two sides discussed trade and
industrial relations between the two friendly
countries and means of promoting them
particularly in foodstuff industries, opportunities
of joint investment and technology transfer in
meat and vegetables processing. The two sides
also discussed projects of storing and re-
exporting foodstuff from and to Sohar Port, as
well as the potential cooperation in areas of
science, technology and logistic sector. Dr Al
Sunaidy gave a speech on trade and investment
opportunities in the Sultanate. A visual
presentation was also given on the Sultanate’s
ports and economic zones in the presence of
businessmen.
The meeting was attended by Yahya bin
Abdullah al Oraimi, Head of Economic Affairs
Sector at the Foreign Ministry, Said bin Saleh al
Kiyoumi, Chairman of Oman Chamber of
Commerce and Industry (OCCI), Mubarak bin
Salim al Zakwani, Sultanate’s Ambassador to
South Africa, businessmen from both sides and
officials representing various sectors namely
Sohar Industrial Port, Special Economic Zone
Authority at Duqm (SEZAD) and Oman Food
InvestmentHoldingCompany. —ONA
Brazilian federal police had uncovered on
March 17, an investigation into alleged
payments made to government health officials
by meat processing companies to forego
inspectionsandignoreabuses.
Since then, countries around the world have
bannedchickenandbeefimportsfromBrazil.
A Ministry spokesman said: “The ministry will
not issue new import licenses from Brazil and
will investigate the companies and
slaughterhouses who supply the products. If the
supplier is in violation, the ministry will stop
issuing import licenses for that company or
slaughterhouse completely. The ministry is
currently in contact with the Brazilian
government through official channels to get
claritybeclearaboutonthecase.”
Muscat: Oman has suspended all new licences
for Brazilian meat importers and is currently
testing meat imports from Brazil at border
points, the Ministry ofAgriculture and Fisheries
(MAF) has announced.
The Sultanate is also in discussions with the
Brazilian government over inspection of meat
factoriesthere,theministryadded.
Muscat: A comprehensive privatisation
programme for state-owned companies and
standalone investment banks are pre-requisites
for developing a vibrant capital market in Oman,
according to a top-level official at the Capital
MarketAuthority(CMA).
Although the Oman government had indicated
plans for divesting stakes in several state-owned
firms, the whole process was slow and several
companies are yet to announce a proper plan for
disinvestment.
“I don’t think we are going to see a vibrant
capital market without a comprehensive and
clear privatisation programme by the
government,” Sheikh Abdullah bin Salim Al
Salmi, executive president of CMA, told the
TimesofOman.
Earlier, he said the market regulator would ask
the ministry to come out with a five-year plan for
disinvesting its stake in government companies
through initial public offerings. This will help
investors get clarity on the timeframe for such
investments.
“This was discussed in Tanfeedh discussions.
The authorities should come up with a five-year
programme to let the market know that the
government intends to offload its stake on
certaindates,”AlSalminoted.
Muscat: Delegated by His Majesty Sultan
Qaboos bin Said, His Highness Sayyid Asa'ad
bin Tariq bin Taimour Al Said, Deputy Prime
Minister for International Relations and
C o o p e r a t i o n A f f a i r s a n d P e r s o n a l
Representative of His Majesty the Sultan will
leave on Tuesday for the sisterly Hashemite
Kingdom of Jordan to lead the Sultanate's
delegation in the 28th Arab Summit, scheduled
tobeheldinJordan.
Sayyid Asa'ad will be accompanied by an
official delegation comprisingYousuf binAlawi
bin Abdullah, Minister Responsible for Foreign
Affairs, Dr. Abdullah bin Mohammed Al
Sa'eedi, Minister of Legal Affairs, Dr. Fu'ad bin
Ja'afar Al Sagwani, Minister of Agriculture and
Fisheries, Khalifa bin Hamad Al Badi, Adviser
at the Office of the Personal Representative of
His Majesty the Sultan, Saif bin Ahmed Al
Sawafi, Adviser at the Office of the Personal
Representative of His Majesty the Sultan,
Khamis bin Mohammed Al Farsi, Sultanate's
Ambassador to the Hashemite Kingdom of
Jordan, Ali bin Ahmed Al Isa'ee, Sultanate's
Ambassador to the Arab Republic of Egypt, its
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Al Rafd Fund
raises funding
limit, priority for
unemployed
All development
projects in
harmony with
biodiversity
Decision on
Brazilian food
products
MUSCAT: The Al Rafd Fund has decided to
launch the second package of funding
programmes during the second half of this year.
The fund affirmed that the priority will be given
to young Omani job-seekers. The Board of
Directors of Al Rafd Fund held its first meeting
this year under the chair of DrAli bin Masoud al
Sunaidy, Minister of Commerce and Industry
and Board Chairman at Wadi Sharm Resort in
the Wilayat of Mahdha. The meeting reviewed
the second package of funding programme
which involved new conditions for the small and
medium industrial projects and for which a
funding ceiling of RO 200,000 was agreed.
Tourism projects will receive up to RO 150,000
in a bid to encourage job-seekers to set up
tourism businesses. On the meeting sidelines,
the board members visited the Al Rafd Fund’s
branch in the Governorate of Al Buraimi and
reviewed the work and the registered results
regarding the project finance where 40 projects
were received total finance exceeding RO 1.3
million with a repayment rate reaching 93 per
cent.
By Kabeer Yousuf — MUSCAT: March 25 –All
development projects in the Sultanate aimed to
bring a change to the tourism domain of the
region or at enhancing the infrastructure are very
much in terms with the nature, according to the
Minister of Tourism. No compromise
whatsoever is made and will not be made when it
comes to nature and environment while
launching any development projects, and the
government is keen in protecting the rich
biodiversity, flora and fauna of the country, the
ministry affirmed.Talking to the Observer on the
sidelines of the recently signed RO 385 million
Qurayat ITC project announced by the Qurayat
Development Company (QDC) with Ministry of
Tourism on Thursday, Ahmed bin Nasser al
Mehrzi, Minister of Tourism, said the rich
biodiversity of the eastern coastal region is well
taken into consideration while preparing the
blueprintsofthedevelopment.
“We take into consideration the environment, the
biodiversity and the natural habitats before we
initiative any development programmes. The
present project of the Ministry of Tourism with
the QDC will be a balanced development and it is
one of the strong points for development of the
Sultanate,” the minister said. Qurayat, which is a
small fishing village some 83km southeast of
Muscat, is characterised by a towering mountain
terrain with waters flowing amidst high
mountains and green patches on the sides. This
wilayat is home for Oman’s oldest mosques and
towers and forts along with other historical and
archaeological ruins some of which date back to
the prehistoric period. It is also a home for many
oldaflajthatdatebacktothepre-Islamicperiod.
Plan for roll-
on/roll-off terminal
at Duqm Port in
Oman
products from Brazil which include frozen beef
and poultry, some frozen vegetables, honey and
frozenfish.
“We are reviewing the Brazilian products on
their fitness for human consumption and a
decision will be taken today after the committee
designated with the task submits its report,” Dr
Fuad bin Jaafar al Sajwani, Minister of
AgricultureandFisheries,said.
Brazil’s meat exports have fallen sharply since a
police investigation into alleged bribery of food-
sanitation inspectors in the world’s top beef and
poultry exporter sparked a wave of trade bans.
Police have accused more than 100 people,
mostly inspectors, of taking bribes in exchange
for allowing the sale of rancid products,
falsifying export documents or failing to inspect
meatpackingplantsatall.
Many countries like Chile and South Korea
suspended some imports as a “precautionary
measure” while the European Union considered
action against such companies exporting meat
products to the EU. On Saturday, China and
Egypthaveliftedbanonimports.
By Kabeer Yousuf — MUSCAT: March 25 –
Oman’s Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries
(MoAF) will review the various poultry
products from Brazil in the wake of the Brazilian
government suspending 21 Brazilian companies
for the meat corruption scandal, the Minister has
toldtheObserver.
The expert committee will review imported food
By Conrad Prabhu — MUSCAT: MARCH 25 –
Oman Wan Fang LLC, the Chinese consortium
behind the ambitious Sino-Omani Industry City
planned at Duqm Special Economic Zone
(SEZ), has pledged to sponsor the training and
skills development of around 1,000 young
OmanisinChina.
An announcement to this effect was made by one
By KabeerYousuf — MUSCAT: March 26 –All
retail outlets in Oman have been asked to
provide a copy of bills in two languages to the
customers to comprehend the whereabouts of
the purchase of a product.All bills, invoices and
receipts for goods or services transacted
between the traders, retail outlets, other
commercial outlets including restaurants should
provide a bilingual bill (Arabic and English), if
not just in Arabic. The Ministry of Commerce
and Industry, Oman Chamber of Commerce and
Industry and the Public Authority for Consumer
Protection (PACP) urged the retail outlets to
abide by the rule so as discrepancies arising out
of suspected wrong billing can be kept at bay,
sources confirmed.
“Having the bills and other proofs of purchase of
Port of Duqm, anchoring the giant Special
Economic Zone (SEZ) at Duqm on Oman’s
Wusta coast, plans to establish a dedicated
terminal for roll-on/roll-off (RO-RO) cargo at its
commercial quay — a move that underscores
Duqm’s potential as a hub for automotive-
related activities and RO-RO transshipment.
According to a senior port executive, a RO-RO
Terminal has now been envisioned as part of the
port’s 2.2 km-long commercial quay. It will be
located between the Multipurpose Terminal and
a pair of ContainerTerminals planned at the port,
said Capt Wim Aerbelien (pictured), Harbour
Master and Chief Pilot of Port of Duqm
Company.
Roll-on/roll-off cargo comprises essentially
wheeled cargo, such as automobiles, trucks,
trailers and other platform vehicles that can be
discharged from suitably designed roll-on/roll-
off ships. The dedicated facility is being created
keeping in mind, among other objectives, the
SEZ’s vision to host a major auto manufacturing
industry in Duqm. A RO-RO Terminal will also
be potentially helpful in the discharge of huge
Mwasalat
launches new bus
route
By Staff Reporter — MUSCAT: March 25 –
Mwasalat launched its new bus route (Mabelah
– Industrial Mabelah) from Friday as part of the
company’s commitment to expand its scope of
services and expand existing routes in the
Governorate of Muscat. The company will run
the trips on the new route (to and from) every 20
minutes between 6 am- 9:20 pm (Sunday-
Thursday), and between 6:40 am — 9:20 pm
(Fridays,Saturdaysandpublicholidays).
The new route will be as follows: (Mabelah Bus
Station – Joud Roundabout – Mabelah Zone 1 –
Khair Roundabout – Khair Street – As-Salam
Street – Industrial Mabelah Roundabout –
Industrial Area (2,4,5,6,8) – Baraka District
(1,2,3) then the return trip takes the following
route: (Khair Street – Khair Roundabout –
Mabelah Zone (1, 2) – Joud Roundabout –
Mabelah Bus Station). The company expects the
route to witness customer patronage since it
passes through one of the most vital areas in the
governorate, namely, Mabelah Industrial Area.
Thefareforasingletripis 200baisas.
Sino-Omani
industrial park
project to offer
1,000 scholarships
for Omanis
Have bilingual
bills or face action
of the consortium members at a briefing for a
group of visiting journalists at the SEZ last
week.
Maya Yang, the CEO of one of six corporations
that together constitute the Oman Wan Fang
consortium, said: “We will sponsor a total of
1,000 Omani students who will be given the
chance to study in China. After the completion
of their study, they will return to participate in
the construction of the Oman-China Investment
Park.”
Last May, the consortium signed a landmark
deal with the SEZAuthority of Duqm (SEZAD)
for the establishment of the industrial park with
an investment size billed in excess of $10
billion.
Covering an area of 1,172 hectares — the single
largest parcel of land leased to a developer — the
sprawling site will house a plethora of heavy,
medium and light industries, as well as host
substantial tourist, commercial and healthcare
components.
Mega investments are proposed to include a new
230,000 barrels per day capacity refinery, as
well as a Chinese-led refining and
petrochemicalscomplex.
An initial batch of 40 Omani students, hailing
mainly from Wusta Governorate, left the
Sultanate on a two-year scholarship study at
Chinese institutions in Ningxia Province. “For
many of them, it was their first travel out of
Oman,andtheywereveryexcited,”saidMaya.
In addition to Chinese and English language
training, the students will also be offered skills
that will support their long-term career
developmentupontheirreturntotheSultanate.
over-dimensioned project equipment that are
shipped on platform vehicles, such as self-
propelledmodulartransporters.
Already, two major auto manufacturing
investments have been lined up for
implementation at Duqm. Karwa Motors, a joint
venture of Oman Investment Fund (OIF), a
sovereign wealth fund of the Sultanate of Oman,
and Karwa of Qatar, aims to commit RO 160
million in the establishment of a major auto
assembly plant at the SEZ. A one million sq
metre plot earmarked for the project will host a
complex with a capacity to produce around 2,000
units of buses, trucks, cars and other vehicles of
varioussizes.
Oman Investment Fund is also firming up plans
to set up another auto plant at Duqm in
partnership with Iran Khodro Industrial Group,
the largest auto maker in Iran. Orchid
International Auto, the proposed JV, plans to
invest around $200 million in an export-oriented
facilityattheSEZ.
Additionally, OIF is weighing other auto-related
investments in the SEZ designed to underpin the
growthofanautomotivehubatDuqm.
Meanwhile, the joint venture of MSF (Portugal)
and Serka Taahhut (Turkey) is currently
undertaking the infrastructure development of
the commercial quay at Duqm Port at a cost of
$230million.

By Lakshmi Kothaneth — MUSCAT: March 26
– A sand storm that challenges his tent, a crow
from nowhere and the dog disappearing for 24
hours – life in the Empty Quarter, Rub al Khali,
is everything but empty for the adventurer
Gauthier Toulemonde. He has been to Oman
three times and during one of those trips he
happened to buy ‘Le Desert des Deserts’ by
Wilfred Thesiger. Gauthier explained, “The
pictures were so beautiful! I said to myself-
‘This is where I want to go!’In March 2017 his
dream became a reality. He has seen the
Sharqiya Sands and the EmptyQuarter but it was
the Empty Quarter that he chose to camp for four
weeks. The Experiment with the desert by living
onhisown beganonMarch3rd.
“Both deserts are nice but maybe the Empty
Quarter is most spectacular,” he explained. The
author of three books began his stay in the desert
with two computers, four solar panels, one
satellite phone and three cameras. According to
the adventurer, that is enough to work and to
make a movie in connection with Barasti
Productions.
Gauthier had only camped in the desert once
before, “Only one night as a tourist! But I have
spent 40 days alone on a deserted island in
Indonesia. So I do have some experience of
thesekindofthings.
“That is where I learnt to manage with hostile
environment: heat, snakes, scorpions, violent
storms, solitude and so on. Here, Ahmed Al
Mahrouqi gave me over three days of precious
advises. It is great to learn from the king of the
desert!”
According to Gauthier the nights in the desert
make up for the sunny days and heat of March.
He has to work in the tent nearly all day.
“Sometimes it is difficult (about 40° inside). But
at night it is a real pleasure as it is cooler and I
can watch the stars.” This is when Gauthier and
Slooki, Ahmed’s dog who has stayed back with
him in the desert go for their walks and says,
“Walking at night alone in this immensity is
great and inspiring. Slooki is a great fellow and
with her I learn from the desert and I am not
alone.
The biggest challenge according to the
adventurer is — “It is not the fact to be alone but
to support weather conditions at this time of the
year: hot, sand everywhere, strong wind. One
computer has collapsed.” Dates is definitely
part of the daily menu. “I eat mostly rice and
datestwotimesperdaybutitisenough.”
FDI in Oman
zooms to RO 7.02
billion
Muscat airport
among fastest
growing in ME
MUSCAT: Abdullah bin Salim al Mukhaini,
Secretary of the Real Estate Registry, at the
Ministry of Housing said that the value of traded
contracts during February 2017 stood at RO
218,430,701 while the collected fees amounted
toRO 5,988,916.
He added that the real estate activity involved
29,827 transactions that included sale, grant,
inheritance, exchange, mortgage and mortgage
redemption,usufructanddivisiontransactions.
Al Mukhaini further said that the total value of
sale contracts stood at RO 87,055,000 through
5033 sale transactions at the level of the
Sultanate’s governorates while the fees
collectedhitRO 3,454,827.
He pointed out that the Governorate of North Al
Batinah recorded the highest number of sale
contracts compared to other governorates during
February 2017 to 1012 sale contracts, followed
by the Governorate of Muscat with 882, South
Al Batinah with 791, Al Dakhiliyah with 647,
North Al Sharqiyah 422, Dhofar with 378 and
SouthAlSharqiyahwith349salecontracts.
Al Mukhaini added that 19,145 title deeds were
issued during February 2017 including those
1998 until 2015, reaching an all-time high of RO
1281millionin2007.
FDI inflows to Oman in 2015 stood at $822
million in 2015 from $739 million in the
previous year, registering an increase of 11 per
cent.
FDI inflow in 2015 was 4.8 per cent of Oman’s
GDP compared to 3.3 per cent of GDP in the
previousyear.
The overall balance of payments position
registered a surplus of RO 235 million during
2015 giving rise to the accretion of foreign
exchangereservesbythesameamount.
As at the end of 2015, the gross foreign assets of
the Central Bank of Oman stood at RO 6,745.8
million
providing import cover for around 8 months of
merchandisegoods.
Real estate
contracts value hit
RO 218m in
issuedfortheGCC citizens.
He further said that the total value of mortgage
contracts stood at RO 129,654,462 through
concluding 1650 contracts at the level of
governoratesintheSultanate.
He pointed out that the fees collected from
mortgagecontractshitRO 618,633.
Ministry
implements
project of aflaj
data
documentation
Gauthier begins
his final week in
the Empty Quarter
Muscat varsity to
offer right mix of
people for job
market
MUSCAT: The Ministry of Regional
Municipalities and Water Resources has carried
out the implementation of the project of aflaj
data documentation. This is as per its endeavour
to ease the services and procedures in both the
municipal and water sectors. Through this
project, the ministry establishes an electronic
record for each falaj contains technical reports,
falaj specifications, falaj maintenance data, and
the spent amounts. 965507In addition, the
record includes the constructional and water
status of the falaj, maps showing tracks and the
affected parts of the falaj. The estimated number
of files to be logged and documented in the
electronic program is around 4,112 files,
covering all the three types of (live and dead)
aflajoftheSultanate;Dawoudi,AiniandGaili.
The project aims to achieve easy access of
specialists to each falaj data through the World
Wide Web, without the need to use the papers or
handling falaj file. It will also contribute to
shorten the time required to deal with aflaj
application, follow-up and evaluate their
maintenance. The project phases consist of the
assorting process, then documents imaging
using scanners connected to computers, and
saving attachments. Followed by logging of
required data according to specific fields in each
window. Finally, auditing is implemented to
ensuredataaccuracy.
By Kabeer Yousuf — MUSCAT: March 26 –
Muscat University (MU), the Sultanate’s most-
awaited higher education institution envisaged
by a group of 37 educationists and other
prominent personalities towards the idea of best
quality education institution, have vowed to
offer the best mix of manpower to fuel the
ambitious plans of the country. It was announced
by Prof Anthony Cahalan, Vice-Chancellor and
his deputies; Prof Yusra al Mouzughy, Prof
Costas Chryssou and Dr Said al Kitani, at an
event attended by Fatima Abdul Abbas al
Noorani Director General of Private Schools,
Ministry of Education at the Children’s Public
Libraryrecently.
Accordingly, the MU will offer both Under
Graduate and Post Graduate courses in three
main streams namely, Business and
Management, Engineering and Technology, and
Transport and Logistics from Britain’s two
reputable universities; Cranfield University and
Aston University. While the UG programmes
intake was over last October, the PG will begin
by September this year, according to the
management.
“We will just be delivering high quality
workforce to fuel the ambitious growth plans of
the nation”, the management told Observer,
adding that “based on the agreements signed
between MU and each of these two universities,
MU will offer double degree programmes at
Bachelor and Masters levels and through the
conceptofflyingfaculty.”
goods or services in Arabic is stipulated by the
Consumer Protection Law amended in 2014
based on the Royal Decree No 66/2014 and
various articles of the law instruct all to abide by
the same,” a highly placed source at the PACP
toldtheObserver.
Article 15 of the law says that the consumer shall
be entitled to obtain an invoice written inArabic
language proving the purchase of the
commodity or the receipt of the service and the
invoice shall include the basic information about
the commodity or the service and any other
information as determined by the regulations.
Article 5 has cleared that for any commodity or
service that can cause damage to the consumer
or the consumer’s property upon use; a clear and
specific warning must be given in Arabic and
English.
The warning shall indicate the correct method to
use the commodity or service and means of
remedying any damage that may result from
such useandinaccordancewiththeregulations.
said, “We are moving to an airport which would
be six times bigger than the current one. We will
embark on major operations, considering our
currentgrowthrate15percent.”
According to National Centre for Statistics and
Information (NCSI), the number of international
flights at Muscat International Airport logged a
10.6 per cent increase by the end of February this
year,comparedwiththesameperiodlastyear.
During the period, there were 8,141 landings
and an equal number of take-offs, as against
7,361 landings and 7,358 take-offs in the first
two months of 2016. Further, there has been a
15.5 per cent increase in the number of
passengers on international flights to and from
Muscat International Airport, with their
numbers rising to 2.04 million this year,
comparedwith1.77millionrecordedlastyear.
The total number of flights at the Muscat airport
(including international and domestic)
increased by 10.1 per cent to 17,853, while the
number of passengers rose by 15.5 per cent to
over 2.22 million during the first two months of
the current year, compared with figures for the
sameperiodof2016.
ByVinod Nair — MUSCAT: March 26 – Muscat
International Airport is leading in terms of
passenger traffic growth in the Middle East, as
per the statistics available for January from
Airports International Council (ACI). Muscat
was leading over its rivals with a growth rate of
14.7 per cent, to be followed by Doha with 14
per cent and Dubai at 9.7 per cent, compared
withthesameperiodlastyear.
It is reported that over 48 airlines are flying from
Muscat and Salalah airports to more than 69
destinationsin32countriesaroundtheworld.
Among the rankings for top airports in Asia (in
the category for five to 15 million passengers per
year), Muscat was placed at the second position
below India’s Hyderabad airport with a growth
rate of 26.2 per cent and followed by Osaka
Itamiairportwith2.6percent.
ACI expects international passenger traffic to
double to 14 billion by 2029, and while it may be
noted that the new Muscat airport, when
complete, will be able to handle 20 million
passengers per year against the current capacity
of12millionpassengers.
Saeed Khamis al Zadjali of Oman Airport
Management Committee (OAMC) recently,
By Samuel Kutty — MUSCAT: MARCH 26 –
Foreign direct investment (FDI) flow in the
Sultanate during the first nine months of 2016
reached RO 7.02 billion. While the United
Kingdom continues to be the top investor with a
massive RO 2.79 billion during the period, the
United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Kuwait
followed with RO 924.8 million and RO 396.1
million investments, respectively. According to
the National Centre for Statistics and
Information, the FDI during the third quarter
alone stood at RO 154 million. Analysts are
optimistic that foreign investments into the
country will witness substantial increase in the
coming years, thanks to several measures
including legislative measures being introduced
bythegovernment.
“The new foreign capital investment law and the
broader economic diversification plans will
definitely enhance investor confidence and
provide improved business climate for attracting
foreign direct investment in the country,” said
TariqalLawati,afinancialexpert.
The proposed new law is based on international
standards and foreign investors’ rights and
obligations are clearlydefined and well set out in
the proposed law. Global agency Trading
Economics in a research note forecast that FDI
in Oman would reach RO 121.13 million by the
end of 2016. It averagedRO 351.22 millionfrom

Iran to sanction
15 US
firms for Israel ties
Canada’s APEX
sets sights on
Block 36
prospects
TEHRAN: Iran said on Sunday it will impose
sanctions on 15 US companies for supporting
Israel’s “terrorist actions” as part of reprisals for
the increasing pressure being announced by
Washington lawmakers. The decision comes two
days after the US announced new sanctions
against groups and individuals that it accuses of
c o l l a b o r a t i n g w i t h I r a n ’s w e a p o n s
programme. The sanctions target firms that
provide arms and equipment to Israel “for use
against the Palestinians”, IRNA said. “All
transactions with these firms are forbidden, their
assets will be seized and their officials
will not be able to obtain a visa,” it added.
The list included defence firms such as United
Technologies, Military Armament Corporation
and Bushmaster Firearms International, as well
as Re/Max Real Estate, which Tehran accuses of
“buying and selling homes in settlements located
in the occupied territories”. In another tit-for-tat
move, Iran’s parliamentary foreign
affairs committee said it would propose a new
law labelling the US army and CIA as terrorist
groups. The announcement was a response to a
new bill put forward by US lawmakers that
would see Iran’s Revolutionary Guards listed as
a terrorist organisation. “The American army is
p r e s e n t i n n u m e r o u s r e g i o n a l
crises such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and
Yemen and provides vast support to terrorist
groups,”said Alaeddin Boroujerdi, president of
the committee, according to a state television
report. Tensions have mounted between Tehran
and Washington since US President Donald
T r u m p t o o k o f f i c e i n J a n u a r y .
By KabeerYousuf — MUSCAT: March 27 – The
crime rate in Oman has declined by 7.5 per cent
last year thanks to the constant efforts of the law
enforcement authorities, awareness campaigns
and stringent punitive measures by various
authorities, according to the Public Prosecution.
The total number of cases last year stood at
37,972 against 41,072 in 2015, a reduction of
nearly 7.5 per cent, said Mohammed Said al
Yahyaei, Assistant Attorney General and
Director-GeneralofMuscatPublicProsecution.
“Constant campaigns, awareness about stringent
punishments and efforts by various sections of
the society has helped in reducing crimes in the
country by 7.5 per cent,” Al Yahyaei said at the
annual Public Prosecution press briefing. There
is a huge drop in the number of cases handled by
the Directorate General of Investigations and
Pleadings by 48.3 per cent in 2016. “The Public
Prosecution would like to confirm its actions are
within the norms set by the Royal orders of His
Majesty and the parameters of the nation’s
criminal procedures,” said DrAhmed bin Said al
Shukaili, Assistant Attorney General and
ManageroftheAttorneyGeneralOffice.
The Directorate General of Public Prosecution in
the Governorate of Muscat received 22.8 per cent
of the total cases or 8,673 (the highest number),
followed by the Directorate General for Public
Prosecution in the Governorate of North Al
Batinahwith6,684 or17.6 percent,headded.
Bausher reported 2,809 cases and Salalah had
5,481 cases.
“The Public Prosecution will continue to be strict
on human rights violation, human trafficking,
misuse of public funds, bribery, pornography and
public order cases. We have also initiated various
legal awareness campaign against all the cases
and another notable change is that there has been
a substantial decline in juvenile crimes,” said
Ahmed Hamed al Rawahi, Senior Public
Prosecutor and Public Funds Administrator, and
added that the exact figures will be with the
MinistryofSocialdevelopment.
However, the available data with the Public
Prosecution suggests that juveniles constitute 4
per cent of the total number of the defendants
with 1,090 juvenile defendants, a decrease of 102
incomparisonwiththatin2015.
Canada-based upstream energy firm Allied
Petroleum Exploration Inc (APEX), whose 100
per cent interest in Block 36 in southwest Oman
was endorsed by Royal Decree 15/2017 issued
last week, says it has its sights on two promising
prospects with a combined reserves potential of
over 300 million barrels. The Royal Decree
issued on March 19, 2017, ratifies the decision
of the local subsidiary of Norwegian oil and gas
firm DNO OmanAS to withdraw from Block 36
in which it had a 75 per cent interest. DNO had
acquired the 75 per cent interest in a farm-out
concluded by APEX in September 2013. As a
result of DNO’s withdrawal from the Block,
APEX now regains 100 per cent interest and
operatorshipoftheBlock.
According to Alberta-based APEX, the work
carried out in conjunction with its farm-out
partner over the past four years has
“dramatically de-risked the block, and identified
the areas where chance of exploration success is
highest”. “APEX currently plans to acquire
high-resolution seismic over two of the larger
prospects (with combined reserves of over 300
million barrels) and prepare for the drilling of
the next exploration wells,” the Canadian firm
stated on its website. APEX was awarded the
sprawling 18,500 sq km concession, situated
along the Sultanate’s borders with Saudi Arabia
and Yemen, in September 2011. A pair of deep
wells drilled previously on the relatively
underexplored concession had hydrocarbon
shows with over 40 metres of Silurian – one of
the main source rocks that generated oil for giant
fieldselsewhereintheGulfregion.
During the period of the farm-out, reprocessed
and newly acquired seismic yielded a number of
prospects and numerous exploration leads, said
APEX, noting that the reserve size of the
prospects and leads ranges from 50 to 250
million barrels. Also as part of its obligations,
DNO drilled the first exploration well under the
farm-out. Hayah-1, drilled in May 2016,
targeted an undrilled portion of the Block,
reachingadepthof3,010 metres.
Fish production
rises by 11.5 per
cent
Importance of risk
management in
adventure tourism
highlighted
Free Wi-Fi on
Mwasalat buses
Madinat Al Irfan
Development
triumphs at
Cannes awards
By Zainab Al Nasseri — MUSCAT: March 27 –
During the past five years, fish production has
gone up as the growth on an average stood at 11.5
per cent. Figures show that fish exports also
increased from 94,000 tonnes to 157,000 tonnes
between 2011 and 2016, according to Yaqub al
Busaidi, Director-General of Marketing and
Fishery Investments at the Ministry of
Agriculture and Fisheries. This was revealed at a
workshop titled “Basics of participation in
exhibitions” held on Monday under auspices of
Dr Hamed al Aufi, Under-Secretary of the
ministry.
Speaking on the occasion, Al Busaidi said the
sector’s development plan endorsed by the
Supreme Council for Planning, includes
establishing enterprises like Oman Aquaculture
Development Company which is now working to
establish many other projects. “There is also
Wusta Fishing Company which is still under
formation, besides a proposal to establish a firm
for marketing services,” he added. The
contribution of agriculture and fisheries sector to
gross domestic product (GDP) reached RO 327
million in 2016, according to National Centre for
StatisticsandInformation.
“Oman exports fish to more than 40 countries as
per International Trade Centre data. So, there are
many reasons for SME entrepreneurs to discover
the potential of this sector, market it and set up
added-value projects,” said Saif al Mammari,
Acting Director of Exports Development at
Ithraa.
Al Mammari said that knowledge of basics and
concepts of international trade is a must before
startinganyexportingactivity.
By Zainab Al Nasseri — MUSCAT: March 27 –
The Ministry of Tourism on Monday launched
Risk Management and Safety in Adventure
Tourism (RMSAT) programme, as part of its 15
initiatives aimed at encouraging adventure sports
and tourism activities in Oman. The programme,
launched under the auspices of SayyidAdil bin al
Murdas al Busaidy,Adviser of TourismAffairs at
the Ministry of Tourism, resulted from the
national programme to promote economic
diversification ‘Tnafeeth’ which is backed by
ImplantationandFollowupSupportUnit.
The launching presentation of the programme
included a working paper, which explained the
purpose of introducing the programme, its
importance and its primary role in developing the
tourism sector in the Sultanate. It also
highlighted the roles of the programme’s
stakeholders and institutions of the Omani
tourism sector, which organise adventure
tourismactivities.
The programme was launched during a
presentation, prepared by the Ministry, in
cooperation with supportadventure.co.nz, which
is supervised by the New Zealand Government,
andMavenInternationalConsultingCompany.
Christopher Knoll, Director of International
Enterprise Development, explained the
programme and its contents; namely structuring
the system, safety management plans, standard
operating procedures, managing the risks, the
teamwork, and the activity practitioners, types of
equipment, accidents, emergencies and
examinationofsystems andrecords.
During the presentation, an adventure tourism
activities guide, that particularly highlighted the
MadinatAl Irfan urban development, a signature
project of wholly government-owned tourism
investment vehicle Omran, fought off global
competition to win the award in the Big Urban
Projects category at the prestigious MIPIM AR
Future ProjectAwards 2017.Announced at a gala
dinner in Cannes, France, last week, the
development was recognised by the judges for its
creative design which fuses Omani building
traditions with contemporary design, as well as
itsholisticinfrastructurestrategy.
The awards, now in their 16th year, took place
during MIPIM, the world’s leading real estate
exhibition. With more than 200 entries from 30
countries, the awards recognise the contribution
made towards the regeneration of the areas or
citiesinwhichtheprojectsarebuilt.
Pioneering an institutional framework for
planning, development, and regulatory control,
MadinatAl Irfan delivers the highest standards of
urban development for Oman and the region.The
project was designed to establish a new urban
centre within the heart of Muscat – home to a
signed by the two companies in December 2016
to provide Wi-Fi on all buses of the company,
giving the public transport users a unique
Internet experience onboard. It will also help
enhance the quality of the services provided by
Mawasalat to its customers. How to use the
service, our customers can follow the following
steps: Turn on ‘Wi-Fi’ in the device, choose
‘Omantel Wi-Fi’ and then run the Internet
browser and wait for the ‘Omantel’ to enter the
mobile number and follow the instructions.
Mawasalat customers using services from
Omantel, Oorredoo, Renna and others can enjoy
thisfreeWi-Fi.
wadis, was also launched. The same has been
prepared by the Ministry of Tourism, in
c o o p e r a t i o n w i t h t h e N e w Z e a l a n d
Government’s Business, Innovation and
Employment Department; Stephen Jones,
Development Consultant at Oman Tourism
Development Company; and the Chairman of the
Empowerment of Adventure and Nature
activitiesinOman.
The guide includes a description for adventure
tourism in wadis, the risk identification and
management process, the mechanism of
classifying wadis, the most prominent activities
can be done in wadis, and how to manage the
risks, the teamwork, the activity practitioners,
and types of equipment, accidents, and
emergencies.
Mawasalat has introduced the free and unlimited
Wi-Fi service in cooperation with Omantel on
all city routes in Muscat from Tuesday (March
28). Shortly, the facility will be extended to the
fleet operating on foreign routes, as well as to the
different governorates and the Sultan Qaboos
University. The facility follows an agreement
Crime rate down by
7.5 %

living, working and visiting population of some
280,000. Its innovative infrastructure strategy,
adhering to world-best practice, aims for
significant improvements to the project’s overall
sustainability performance, including 50 per cent
reduction in energy demand, potable water use
andcarreliance.
maintenance — a capability that will now be
significantly enhance in the Sultanate, said DrAl
Abri.
Babcock, which has a 49 per cent shareholding
in Duqm Naval Dockyard (DND), is the
principal provider of engineering support
services to the UK’s Royal Navy. Over the past
25 years, the British firm has also provided
critical naval design services, equipment and
supporttothenaviesofanumberofcountries.
MUSCAT: OmanAir, the national airline for the
Sultanate of Oman, is continuing its expansion
across Europe and North America by signing a
new partnershipagreementwithLufthansa.
Under the new agreement starting March 26,
2017, guests on Oman Air can connect to 59
destinations across Europe and North America
from Lufthansa’s Frankfurt and Munich hubs on
aninterlinebasis.
At the same time, Lufthansa will codeshare with
Oman Air on Oman Air operated services from
both Frankfurt and Munich to Muscat, allowing
their guests to experience the hospitality and
outstandingserviceofOmanAir.
In order to provide Oman Air’s guests with a
seamless travel experience whilst connecting in
Frankfurt and Munich, OmanAir will be moving
terminals in Frankfurt to the Lufthansa operated
terminals in Frankfurt terminal 1 and Munich
terminal2.
Oman Air will also be re-timing its current
services to Frankfurt to arrive and depart
Frankfurt during the morning to facilitate
connections in Frankfurt to Europe and North
Americainunderthreehours.
Furthermore, as a commitment to the new
opportunities open to Oman Air’s guests with
this partnership, Oman Air will be operating its
brand new Boeing Dreamliner 787-9 between
MuscatandFrankfurt.
ConradPrabhu–
MUSCAT,MARCH 27–
The new Duqm Naval Dockyard (DND), a joint
venture between Oman Drydock Company
(ODC), wholly owned by the Omani
government, and Babcock International Group,
the UK’s leading engineering services provider
for the British Navy, will formally come into
operationnextmonth.
The official launch of the new entity, which will
be located at ODC’s state-of-the-art ship repair
yard at Duqm, will help fuel the inflow of naval
ships from British, European and other friendly
international navies for repairs and maintenance
servicesintheSultanate.
Equally, it will bring specialist marine
engineering know how to Oman which,
alongside planned partnerships with global
heavyweights, will position ODC for stronger
business growth and potentially the rollout of
shipbuilding capabilities in the future as well, a
seniorexecutivesaid.
Dr Ahmed al Abri, Deputy CEO — Operations,
ODC, said: “Our partnership with Babcock will
be formally operational when the new joint
venture is registered with the Ministry of
Commerce and Industry. We expect this to
happennextmonth.”
The imminent incorporation of the new entity
comes less than five months after the two sides
announced a landmark agreement to establish a
partnership designed to enhance ODC’s naval
docking capabilities. Naval ships being more
complex than commercial cargo vessels require
specialist expertise in their handling and
OAMC launches 4
mobile apps
Govt spends 2.7
pc of GDP for
healthcare
New Oman Duqm
Naval Dockyard
set for April
launch
Oman Air
increases
connectivity to
Europe and North
Atlantic
VAT registration
required for firms
with annual
revenues of
$100,000+
Oman LNG hosts
IGU executive
meetings
convenient for passengers and travellers.
Amongst the provided services is the search
engine, flights information, maps, boarding alert,
and the two to-be-launched services: Fast Track
and Parking Reservation. This app is for people
who are always late for their flights or to avoid
long queues. OAMC’s fast track service allows
you to book a special track online. Enter the
number of passengers accompanying you and
pay online, same goes to the parking reservation
service.
Set in Muscat International Airport, OAMC had
launched a mobile game called “SaifTrip” where
the user gets to experience a 4-level adventure
with Saif, who is late for his flight and in order to
catchit,hastogothroughaseriesofobstacles.
The game is a projection of the new airport look,
and offers the user a full perspective on the
services provided by the airport through four
levels: The Drop Off, Check In, Retail and
Departure. As Oman is becoming a leading
destination around the globe, the game promotes
Muscat International Airport and its services as
theworld’s gatetoOman.
The last [SHRAK2] two mobile applications are
Muscat AR, and Salalah AR, which are
augmented reality apps that interact with a drawn
map of Muscat International Airport and Salalah
Airporttoprovidea360landscape
of both airports.The user can enjoy an interactive
experiencewiththe
look and feel of the airports, wander through the
different sections, and know more about each
airport.
MUSCAT,MARCH 28–
More details have emerged about the scope and
specifics of the proposed value added tax (VAT)
regime due to be rolled out in Oman, and the
wider Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region,
effectivefromJanuary1, 2018.
According to leading global professional
advisory services firm EY, businesses with an
annual revenue of over $100,000 will be required
to register for VAT purposes once a legal
framework for the new indirect tax is formally in
place. Registration for VAT is optional for
smaller firms generating revenues between
$50,000 – 100,000, the firm stated in an advisory
toclients.
The revelations come as some GCC member
states make stronger headway in their efforts to
prime their local populations, and businesses in
particular, about the application of the new tax
regime ahead of its coming into force early next
year.
Earlier last week, authorities in the UAE hosted a
briefing session on VAT for government advisors
– an event “aimed to send a clear message to the
market, which is that VAT is coming and
businesses must begin to prepare immediately”,
saidEYinitsadvisory.
“The UAE (and some unnamed other Gulf
Cooperation Council (GCC) Member States) is
still on track to implement VAT from 1 January
2018, and it expects to release its domestic VAT
Law before the end of the first half of 2017, with
detailed Executive Regulations to follow shortly
after.UndertheGCCVAT
Framework Agreement Member States who do
Sultanate comes second in theArab world and 26
internationallyinthehealthfoundation.
He said that during the Eighth Five-Year Plan,
five hospitals, 4 specialised health centres and 39
health centres were opened and operated in
differentgovernorates.
Oman LNG is hosting the prestigious Executive
Committee Meeting of the International Gas
Union (IGU) with the attendance of over 120
senior level executives and gas experts from the
global gas industry. The two-day event, a
collaboration between Oman LNG and IGU,
beganhereyesterday.
As the leading global organisation for the gas
industry, IGU wishes to focus on the role of gas
and how gas can play an important role in the
future energy mix. For this key gas event that
contains both meetings and workshops, IGU has
invited experts from International Organisations,
MinistryandIndustry.
The meetings provide an opportunity for high-
level government representatives and industry
professionals to share knowledge, raise
awareness and to discuss strategic options that
natural gas offers in the context of sustainable
access to energy, social and economic
development, and addressing environmental
challenges.
Salim al Aufi, Under-Secretary, Ministry of Oil
& Gas Oman, will open a workshop on the
theme, “Gas Landscape Market in Oman —
Opportunities&Challenges”tomorrow.
not commence on 1 January 2018 will have up to
oneyeartointroduceVAT,”itstated.
In the Sultanate, businesses are bracing for a
mid-year announcement outlining the
framework for the implementation of Value
Added Tax as part of a Gulf-wide initiative.
Spurred by calls from EY and other professional
services firms, many businesses are gearing up to
provide their accounting and audit staff with the
requisite insights on the application of the tax, as
wellasupdatetheiraccountingsystems.
While the standard VAT rate will be set at 5 per
cent, member states of the GCC can exercise
their prerogative of affixing a zero rate (or an
exemption altogether) for the following sectors:
Education, Healthcare, Real Estate and Land
Transport,accordingtotheEYadvisory.
MUSCAT: DrAhmed bin Mohammed al Saeedi,
Minister of Health, highlighted the attention of
the government for the sound foundations of the
integrated health system, which covers
spending,equivalentto2.7 percentoftheGDP.
He said in a statement to Oman daily newspaper
that the government accounts for 81.1 per cent of
thetotalhealthexpenditure.
It manages approximately 83.1 per cent of the
hospitals, 95.5 per cent of the hospital beds, 62.2
per cent of outpatient services and 94.5 per cent
oftheinpatientcareservices.
The Minister of Health considered that the rapid
reduction of mortality rates and control of
communicable diseases is a healthy
development achievement, pointing out that the
Legatum/Welfare Index confirms the
development of the health sector, where the
MUSCAT:As part of its participation in Oman’s
biggest ICT Trade Fair COMEX2017, Oman
Airports Management Company (OAMC)
launched four mobile apps that are available for
users ofbothAndroidandIOS[SHRAK1].
OAMC’s official mobile application (Oman
Airports) had been launched in 2013 and offers a
number of services that are time-saving and
Oman, South
Africa look to
expand trade in
foodstuffs
JOHANNESBURG: Dr Ali bin Masoud al
Sunaidy, Minister of Commerce and Industry,
met with Rob Davies, Minister of Trade and
Industry of SouthAfrica during his visit to South
Africa. The two sides discussed trade and
industrial relations between the two friendly
countries and means of promoting them
particularly in foodstuff industries, opportunities
of joint investment and technology transfer in
meat and vegetables processing. The two sides
also discussed projects of storing and re-
exporting foodstuff from and to Sohar Port, as
well as the potential cooperation in areas of
science, technology and logistic sector. Dr Al
Sunaidy gave a speech on trade and investment
opportunities in the Sultanate. A visual
presentation was also given on the Sultanate’s
ports and economic zones in the presence of
businessmen.
The meeting was attended by Yahya bin
Abdullah al Oraimi, Head of Economic Affairs
Sector at the Foreign Ministry, Said bin Saleh al
Kiyoumi, Chairman of Oman Chamber of
Commerce and Industry (OCCI), Mubarak bin
Salim al Zakwani, Sultanate’s Ambassador to
South Africa, businessmen from both sides and
officials representing various sectors namely
Sohar Industrial Port, Special Economic Zone
Authority at Duqm (SEZAD) and Oman Food
InvestmentHoldingCompany. —ONA

By Lakshmi Kothaneth — MUSCAT: March 29
– Comex 2017 has become a major platform to
convey e-services from various organizations.
The National Digital Certification Centre has
been activating the Tam service for citizens and
expatriates. It just takes seconds to activate the
card. The ID cards are activated with PKI
certification right at NDCC’s pavilion at
Comex. The Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) —
digital certification activation in the ID card
takes seconds where the name on the card is
verified, followed by finger print, agree on the
termsandbychoosingasix-digitpincode.
After the authentication, the owner of the card is
qualified to sign electronically. What is
installed in the id card are the authentication
certificates and electronic signing certificates.
This is also connected to the mobile phones
through PKI enabled Sim cards. This would
require a replacement of the normal sim card to a
PKI enabled card. These sim cards are available
with Omantel and Ooreedoo and can be
processed online www.oman.om/tam. The
website provides many services such as
verification of the id card whether the id card has
PKI feature.
This service of authentication is usually
provided at the more than 30 Civil Status
Centres via Royal Oman Police in all the
governorates.
“The benefits of Tam are security and protection
of personal data, authentication of digital
identity online without the need of physical
appearance, ability to sign any document or
application electronically, valid and trusted
eSignature with the same legality as regular
signature, ability to validate and integrate the
signed documents, 24/7 access to government
services from everywhere, and saving time and
effort along with money,” explained Yahya al
Azri,DirectorofNDCC.
The service that was launched in 2013 is now
incorporated by other organizations such as
Invest Easy Gateway, Muscat Municipality,
Ministry of Manpower, Ministry of Health,
Public Prosecution, Al Raffd Fund, National
Center for Statistics and Information and Bank
Dhofar and other entities. Bayan services of
Royal Oman Police is also expected to integrate
withtheservicesbyJuly.
By Samuel Kutty — MUSCAT: MARCH 29 –
Thanks to the rising living standards and
intensive health check-ups, infant mortality rate
in the Sultanate has witnessed a significant drop
in the recent years. The rate stood at 9.5 per
thousand live births in 2015 against 14 deaths in
2014, while it witnessed an all-time high of 11.4
in 2004. Congenital disorders have been
attributed to 27 per cent of the deaths. The crude
birth rate, which refers to the number of births in
a given year per thousand of the population in
the middle of that year, reached 34.1 births,
while crude death rate was found to be 2.9 per
thousandpeople.
Infant mortality rate is the number of infants
dying before reaching one year of age, per 1,000
live births in a given year. Data from the
National Centre for Statistics and Information
reveals that as many as 538 child deaths, aged
below 19 years of age, were reported,
accounting for 20.3 per cent of the total deaths in
the Sultanate. According to a report by Ministry
of Health, almost 99 per cent of pregnant women
had access to prenatal and birth services in
hospitals, and this was also reflected in the high
rate of birth registration of both Omani and non-
Omanichildren.
The country has already adopted its National
Strategy for Childhood (2016-2027) and
strengthened the National Commission for
Family Affairs under the Ministry of Social
Welfare. “Oman is committed to creating a
sound and protective environment for children
in which they could be cared for socially,
economically and emotionally”, the ministry
said in its annual report. “There were initiatives
in place to reinforce child-friendly hospitals by
the greater inclusion of communities, a law on
formula had been introduced and child-spacing
was promoted in families. All those initiatives
had resulted in reducing malnutrition to 2.4 per
cent,”thereportpointedout.
New Oman
multimodal
transport law on
Sharakah
investments in
Omani SMEs total
RO 5.4m
Sultanate sees fall
in infant mortality
rate
Activate Tam card
for digital sign
Seminar on
Oman’s family
businesses held
industry stakeholders, at a workshop hosted by
the Ministry last month. More than 50
executives, representing among others the Royal
Oman Police Customs, ROPTraffic Department,
Oman Global Logistics, Ministry of Commerce
and Industry, Ithraa and private players, were in
attendance.
Commenting on a timeline for the rollout of the
legislation, the official added: “We plan to see the
Multimodal Transport Law issued by the end of
thisyearorearlyin2018.”
Entrepreneurs Organisation Oman Chapter, a
non-profit organisation, whose stated mission is
to ‘Engage leading entrepreneurs to learn and
grow’ hosted Reg Athwal (pictured),
international speaker and renowned presenter for
a 2-hour seminar on ‘Unleash your family
business DNA’at the Grand Millennium hotel on
recently.
In this highly interactive and thought-provoking
session, members were given a global
perspective on “Family Business Matters” and
understand the building blocks of successfully
operating family businesses that have surpassed
generations. The seminar focused on new
generation entrepreneurs getting inducted in
family business to seasoned entrepreneurs
runningtheirfamilybusinesses.
The attendees were exposed to making headway
in terms of building dream teams to
professionalise their business and understand
how to assess professionals who they wish to
find, attract, hire and retain for future growth.
Athwal shared personal case studies that have
helped entrepreneurs and family groups achieve
125 to 800 per cent growth in their businesses
within2-3years.
Entrepreneurs’ Organisation (EO) was
established in 1987 with its head office in the
United States. EntrepreneursOrganisationOman
chapter was founded in 2009 by a group of 18
entrepreneurs. EO Oman has grown to 50
membersoverthepast8years.
Reg Athwal is the Founding Partner and
Managing Director RTS Global Partners, the
world’s largest family business advisory firm in
Africa, Middle East and Asia, with advisory,
consulting, education and ventures being its core
business activities among others. RTS is now a
leading family business advisory and
professional services firm supporting hundreds
ofclientsinover150disciplines.
to collaborate, discuss business opportunities
and meet with Board Members. The event was
attendedby40SMEs.
In 2016, Sharakah received “The BizzAward” by
the World Confederation of Businesses
(WORLDCOB) in recognition of its effort in
developinglocalcapacityandSMEs.
Sharakah, set up by Royal Decree to support the
development of small and medium enterprises
(SMEs) in the Sultanate, held itsAnnual General
Meeting for the financial year ended December
31, 2016, 2017 on Monday. It was presided over
by Hani al Zubair, Chairman of the Board of
Directors. The meeting was attended by Board
Members, representatives of the Shareholders,
officialsofconcernedauthoritiesandstaff.
Hani al Zubair welcomed all the attendees and
gave an overview of Sharakah’s achievements
for 2016. He started by stating that it was a great
year for Sharakah despite the challenges the
economyisfacingduetothefinancialcrisis.
Sharakah’s investments invested in SMEs
totaled RO 807,000, exceeding the targeted
investment by RO 27,000, he said. Funding
support was provided to 17 projects, the
majority of them startups. In all, Sharakah has
supported 127 projects since its establishment,
with investments totalling in excess of RO 5.4
million.
Al Zubair appreciated the cooperation received
by Sharakah from various private sector
organisations in the field of SME development.
He specifically highlighted the strategic alliance
with BPOman in delivering the Khazzan Project
for SME Development.This Project is one of BP
Oman’s SocialInvestmentProgrammes.
The majority of SMEs supported by Sharakah
areperformingwell,theChairmansaid.
Anumber of them have either opened additional
branches or expanded their market reach.
During the same year three SMEs have paid their
dues infull.
In response to a request raised by the supported
SMEs, the Ruwad Sharakah event was held in
2016 as a platform for Sharakah-backed SMEs
O m a n ’s M i n i s t r y o f Tr a n s p o r t a n d
Communications is drafting new regulations
governing all modes of transportation in the
Sultanate.
The proposed MultimodalTransport Law aims to
provide robust legal underpinnings for the
growth of the domestic transportation and
logistics sector — an industry tipped to evolve
into one of Oman’s economic mainstays,
accordingtoaseniorofficialoftheMinistry.
Hanan al Rahbi, Director-General of Planning
and Studies, said the new law is designed to offer,
among other things, comfort to foreign investors
and players that their investments and operations
in the Sultanate are protected by a robust
legislative framework. According to the official,
the great majority of goods freighted anywhere in
the world are subject to different modes of
transportation as they make their way from the
point of origin to end-users across the globe.
Thus, while goods may be shipped in container
by sea, they are transported onward by road or
rail from the port of discharge to markets inland.
This ‘multimodal’ nature of transportation and
logistics is not comprehensively covered by
existing laws and regulations in the Sultanate —
a shortcoming the new law aims to address, she
noted.
“The most important facet of the new law is the
clear definition of the roles for each party
involved in a multimodal transport contract,”
Hanan said. “We must highlight the
responsibility of each party involved, from the
carriers and freight forwarders to the receivers.A
clear distribution of all duties is the main purpose
of the new law,” she added in comments
published in a recent edition of ‘Compass’, the
newsletter of Oman Global Logistics Group
(OGL), the transport and logistics arm of the
Omanigovernment.
Proper regulation of goods carriage and logistics
processes across all available transport modes
promises to give assurance to foreign companies
about the safe movement of their merchandise
across Oman’s borders, the official said. “Better
control and management of multimodal transport
will make Oman much more attractive to the rest
oftheworld,”she furtherstated.
A draft of the Multimodal Transport Law, said
Hanan, was presented to representatives of major
transport and logistics companies, as well as
Services:
Visa
GSM & WhatsApp: +968 917 43 191
amir@muscat-it.com

Alara, Singapore
firm sign Washihi
copper offtake
pact
Buying in bank
stocks pushes
MSM index up
of an offtake agreement for supply of copper
concentratefromtheWashihireserve.
According to a company statement, the offtake
agreement signed by its local subsidiary Alara
Oman Operations Pvt Ltd is with Singapore-
basedStatdromePvtLtd.
As per the agreement, the annual concentrate
production of approximately 35,000 wet tonnes
will be shipped at regular intervals from the
Soharport.
The company said the decision was taken `after
considering the offtake proposals from several
competing companies’. The Singapore-based
company has experience of over 15 years in non-
ferrous concentrates trading, including copper
salesinandoutoftheSultanate.
The company said there also existed the
possibility of supplying the material to the
Omani smelter in case it restarted. But, the
project financial model allows for sea freight
and other charges associated with the sale of
concentratefromtheportatSohar.
The agreement also includes a pre-payment of
$6 million to assist in funding project
construction costs and mine startup. This will be
drawn down in instalments during the project
construction phase, starting once the mining
licencewas issued, thestatementadded.
The agreement forms an important part in
financing and developing the mine and
processing plant at Washihi, and has been
completed in discussion with bank
representatives.
MUSCAT
OmanAir will start its new summer schedule on
Sunday.
The introduction of the new schedule coincides
with the start of summer in Europe, reducing the
time-differencewithOmanbyanhour.
There are three new routes being introduced
during the summer schedule: a four-weekly
service from Muscat to Nairobi, Kenya; a daily
direct service between Salalah and Calicut in
India and a daily direct service between Muscat
andManchester, UK, fromMay1.
This follows the acquisition of new B787-9
aircraftattheendofApril.
The new schedule will also see a number of
flightchanges.
Flights from Muscat to Frankfurt will now
depart early morning, which will enable
passengers to take advantage of connecting
flights with Lufthansa to 59 additional
destinationsin theUS andEurope.
In Frankfurt and Munich, OmanAir will relocate
to the Lufthansa Terminals and offer premium
customersaccesstotheLufthansalounges.
Oman Air’s Frankfurt and Munich services will
now carryaLufthansacodeshare.
The service from Muscat to Chittagong in
Bangladesh will increase from four times to six
times per week, while the frequency of flights to
Hyderabad in India will increase from twice to
thricedaily.
MUSCAT
Buying in some banking stocks saw the Muscat
Securities Market index go up by 0.34 per cent to
close at 5,654.02 points on Sunday, registering
anincreaseof18.94 points.
The value of traded securities fell by 53.4 per
cent to 2.45 million rials. Volumes were also low
and the number of traded securities dropped by
42.43 per cent to be at 9.12 million. There was
trade in the shares of 40 companies and 11 of
them witnessed a price rise and the drop was for a
samenumberofcompanies.
Market capitalisation was up by 0.15 per cent to
reach17.81billionrials.
The financial index went up by 0.46 per cent to
close at 8,017.80 points, while industrial index
was down by 0.18 per cent to close at 7,868.88
points. Services index was up by 0.22 per cent to
close at 2,936.91 points and Shariah marginally
upby0.04percenttocloseat846.27 points.
The top gainers of the day were Al Madina
Investment, Bank Dhofar, Omantel, Gulf
InternationalChemicalandSembcorpSalalah.
The top losers were Al Omaniya Financial
Services, Port Services Corporation, Al Maha
Ceramics, Galfar Engineering and Construction
andBankSohar.
The top securities traded on the basis of value
were Ooredoo, Omantel, Oman Fisheries, Port
Services Corporation and National Bank of
Oman, togehte accounting for 43.47 per cent of
thetotalturnover.
The top securities traded on the basis of volume
were Oman Fisheries, Al Madina Takaful, Al
Anwar Holding, National Bank of Oman and
Port Services Corporation, together accounting
for47.16ofthetotalsecuritiestraded.
Local individuals and institutions had a 77 per
cent share in the total purchase value and 85.9
per cent in the total sell value. Foreign investors
had a share of 7.7 per cent of the total buy value
and 7.9 per cent of the sell value. The net foreign
investment on the market went up by 8.88 per
centto218,000rials.
Protective duty to
check GCC steel
imports soon
Qatar to boost UK
investments
PEIE highlights
new e-services at
expo
Turkey banker
held over Iran
curbs violation
DOHA
Qatar sees Britain’s exit from the European
Union as an opportunity to boost supplies of
liquefied natural gas to the world’s fifth-largest
economy and is open to investing in British
energyassets, Qatar’s energyministersaid.
The Gulf state has 40 billion pounds ($50
billion) of investments in Britain and delivers 90
per cent of Britain’s imports of liquefied natural
gas.
Qatar, the world’s biggest exporter of LNG,
pledged 5 billion pounds of investment in
Britain on Monday in a show of support as Prime
Minister Theresa May begins the formal process
ofnegotiatingadivorcesettlementwiththeEU.
“The UK will have a new era post-Brexit … The
negotiations will start among Europeans and
nobody is extremely clear about where the
negotiations will lead to,” energy minister
Mohammed Bin Saleh Al Sada said in an
interviewlateonMonday.
“However, we can sense the possibility of the
UK’s manufacturing power going higher, and
with that the need for energy. For that, Qatar will
always be there to supply the energy required.
CertainlywecancontributetotheUK’s need.”
Britain started receiving LNG from Qatar in
2008 via ships that dock at South Hook in Kent,
one of Europe’s largest LNG terminals, which is
owned byQatar.
Qatar faces rising competition in Asia from
other LNG producers as new projects in the
United States and Australia come online in the
next few years, and Doha has said it will focus on
expanding contracts in Europe. “Europe is an
important market. The UK is a very important
market,”Sadasaid.
When global oversupply of gas peaks in the next
two to three years, a possible rise in demand for
energy in Europe and Britain could present an
opportunityforQatar,headded.
MUSCAT
An initiative by steel makers of the GCC states
to persuade their governments to impose
protective duties on cheap imports of the metal
has made progress and a decision is expected
soon, Naushad Ansari, CEO of Jindal Shadeed
IronandSteel(JSIS), has said.
Cheap imports threaten profitability of local
manufacturers,accordingtohim.
“We have made substantial progress and the
government is very sympathetic towards this. It
has already been discussed between the GCC
states. GCC decisions do not happen very fast
because everybody has to be on the same page,
but I know for sure Oman’s Ministry of
Commerce and Industry has made positive
recommendations and we are hoping within a
matter of months we should have some results,”
headded.
Speaking to Oman Tribune,Ansari said Chinese
steel was currently selling at the right price,
adding that, today he “was not much worried
about China, but Iran, which was selling at much
lower prices because they want more dollars.
Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) has
had substantial currency devaluation, so they
can offer products at lower prices. Turkey is the
mainsupplierofrebar(reinforcementbar)”.
Recently, European steelmakers trade group
Eurofer said Iranian steel imports threatened
them, after imports from that country rose by
nearly eight times between 2013 and 2016.
Eurofer said Iranian exports to Europe had leapt
to just over 1 million tonnes per annum, behind
India at 1.9 million tonnes, and China at 5.7
million tonnes in 2016. Iran aims to export 20-25
million tonnes annually by 2025, up from an
estimated16milliontonnescurrently.
Rebar is used in civil constructions and is
currently priced at $450-460 per tonne in the
Gulf markets.Ansari said rebar prices close to
$460 per tonne was “not a bad price, but now
inputpriceshavegoneup.
MUSCAT
The Public Establishment for Industrial Estates
(PEIE) is taking part in the 27th edition of the IT,
Telecom and Technology Show – Comex 2017
at Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre to
highlightitsvariouseServicestothevisitors.
These services, according to PEIE officials,
mark a positive impact in facilitating the
services for the investors and encourage
potential investors to invest in the various
estatesthatfallundertheumbrellaofPEIE.
Ali Al Harthy, Acting Director of Information
Technology Department at PEIE, said the
department’s participation at Comex this year is
aimed at introducing PEIE’s eServices offered
totheinvestors.
“A variety of services are being highlighted
including Estate Management System (EMS),
eProspect service, eMap service, and Tenant
Directory and eTenant service. These services,
which have been developed by Omani cadres,
target the potential investors and the public,” Al
Harthysaid.
“eProspect service has been developed to
provide online investment application for
potential investors to apply via the Internet. This
service enlightens potential investors on the
offered services for investors. Moreover, the
eMap service displays a geographic mapping
system of integrated maps of the various estates
pertaining to PEIE. It also provides details of the
tenants including their locations and
availability,”AlHarthysaid.
The US has arrested a senior official at a state-
owned Turkish bank on charges of helping Iran
violate US sanctions, a move that could fuel
tension ahead of Secretary of State Rex
Tillerson’s visitonThursday.
Halkbank’s Mehmet Hakan Atilla is accused of
helping to process millions of dollars of illegal
transactions through US banks for the Iranian
government and other Iranian institutions, the
state-runAnadolunews agencyreported.
“Our deputy general manager in charge of
international banking, Mehmet Hakan Atilla,
Three new routes
in Oman Air
summer schedule
MUSCAT
Australian firm Alara Resources, which is in a
70:30 joint venture with Al Hadeetha
Investment Services, has announced the signing

Oil price swing a
dilemma for top
producers
The crude import data from Asia’s biggest
buyers shows the scale of the challenge facing
Saudi Arabia and Russia, the two countries that
are the lynchpins of the November agreement
between the Organisation of the Petroleum
Exporting Countries (Opec) and its allies to cut
output by 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) in the
firstsix monthsof2017.
That agreement, which provided an initial boost
to crude prices, may be extended for another six
months after ministers from Opec and non-Opec
producers agreed on March 26 to conduct a
review.
While Opec and its allies have had success in
ensuring high compliance with the deal, which
has started the process of drawing down high
global oil inventories, they have also opened the
door to producers outside the agreement to raise
output.Chinese customs data for the month of
February highlights how at risk Opec and its
allies are from cutting their own output while
their rivals are free to pump as much as they
want.
China imported 4.77 million tonnes, or about
1.24 million bpd, from top supplier SaudiArabia
in February, down almost 13 per cent from the
same month a year earlier.While February’s
imports were down from the same month in
2016, they were actually up from the 1.18
million bpd China imported from the kingdom
in January, which shows that the Saudis seem
reluctant to restrict sales to their top
customer.That’s strike one against boosting
pricesinfavourofpreservingmarketshare.
China imported 1.19 million bpd from Russia in
February, up 4.5 per cent on the same month last
year and also above the 1.08 million bpd
recordedinJanuary.
So far, that looks like strike two against cutting
supplies to increase prices over preserving
marketshare.
To be sure, there were countries that agreed to
the cuts that did reduce their exports to China in
February, such as the United Arab Emirates, but
thiswas moretheexceptionthantherule.
China’s imports from SaudiArabia are 1 per cent
higher in the first two months of 2017 from the
same period last year, while those from Russia
are up 18.9 per cent higher, from Angola 5.1 per
cent, Iraq 26.2 per cent, Iran 9.4 per cent and
Venezuela39.6percent.
Saudi Arabia and Russia are likely to discover
that when pursuing two incompatible goals, the
one deemed less important will ultimately be
sacrificed.
The world’s top two oil exporters appear to be
chasing both higher crude prices through their
curbs to production and market share by
increasing exports, at least in Asia, the world’s
biggest crude importing region and the fastest
growing.
The question is which of these two goals will
ultimately be abandoned in favour of the other,
and how long will it take for Saudi Arabia and
Russia to realise the incompatibility of their dual
ambitions?
was taken into custody in the United States
where he was for business purposes on March
28,” the bank said, adding that it was working
withtheauthorities.
Anadolu said Atilla was accused of two crimes
when he appeared before a judge in NewYork on
Tuesday: conspiring to violate US sanctions
againstIranandbankingfraud.
ItsaidAtillafacedupto50yearsinprison.
The arrest came as Tillerson is to meet Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as well as
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in Ankara
onThursday.
In an interview with state broadcaster TRT
Haber, Cavusoglu said that the case would be
discussed during Tillerson’s visit and that
Turkey was following the case closely, through
both its embassy in Washington and consulate in
NewYork.
“We will ask (Tillerson) what this issue is about.
We will bring to the agenda our worries,”
Cavusoglusaid.
He said they would also discuss the Syria
conflict, now in its seventh year, and the
requested extradition of US-based preacher
Fethullah Gulen, whom Ankara accuses of
orderingafailedcouplastyear.
Gulen has denied the charges, but Ankara has
repeatedly called onWashington to return him to
Turkey.
Services:
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GSM & WhatsApp: +968 917 43 191
amir@muscat-it.com

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