Oman’s national petroleum investment company OQ, Madayn (Public Establishment for Industrial Estates) and Industrial Innovation Academy (IIA) have signed an agreement to set up a plastics park in Phase 7 of Sohar Industrial Estate.

The memorandum of understanding (MoU) comes in line with one of Oman Vision 2040’s objectives: achieving a competitive, diversified and integrated economy as the project is envisaged to open major investment opportunities, especially in plastics conversion, with OQ as the major provider of raw materials, reported Oman News Agency (ONA).

The MoU was signed by Hilal Ali Al Kharusi, Chief Executive Commercial & Downstream at OQ on behalf of OQ, Hilal Hamed Al Hasni, Chief Executive Officer of Madayn and Dr Ayman Abdullah Al Fudhaili, Acting CEO of the Industrial Innovation Academy.

The project will play a key role in creating job opportunities in an increasingly competitive and innovation-based economy, broaden the scope of private sector’s contribution to diversified economic growth and encourage the shift to higher value-added sustainable products.

OQ will remain the major provider of high-quality raw material for plastic-based products required for basic uses as sustainable packaging to specialty uses in healthcare, fibers and textile, agriculture, construction to furniture and more.

The plastics park, equipped with the requisite facilities and offering streamlined processes for ease of doing business, will attract more domestic and international investors in the plastic value chain like raw material suppliers, additive manufacturers, plastic convertors, recyclers and testing facilities.

The plastics industrial park is located 16 km from Sohar Airport, 18 km from Sohar Port and 20 km from the OQ raw material plant. Under this MOU, Madayn has allocated 1 million sq m land in the Sohar Industrial estate for the park to manufacture semi-finished and finished high value-added plastic products. Easily available raw material from OQ at competitive prices will result in minimizing raw material stocks, shortening delivery time and saving transportation cost.

Madayn has offered the land at incentivized rates and the Plug and Play concept that offers common facilities like workshop, administrative building, an excellence center, lab, and recycling at attractive rates besides power, gas and telecommunications lines.

The park will also open investment in new, breakthrough, innovative, high quality and sustainable products for polymer conversion to gain competitive advantages.

As investments grow, the plastics park will help develop an industry-specific local equipped with technical skills through training and integration of well-educated unemployed young Omanis and also by introducing polymer curriculum in Oman’s universities.

Hilal Al Kharusi said: “This MOU will fill the gap in plastic convertors in this industry and fuel Oman’s underdeveloped polymer downstream industry.

“This MoU is part of OQ plans to create opportunities from the conversion of its raw material and diversify economic growth. We see major potential in the plastics industry as demand will continue to remain high from various important sectors like healthcare, food packaging, construction and agriculture.”

Hilal Al Hasni, CEO of Madayn, said: “Our mission is to help industries find their true potential by meeting their basic requirements and supporting them in their growth. The plastics industry is one area that holds great potential of growth. We are happy to sign this MOU with OQ which has foreseen the returns investments in this area will bring for the people of Oman.”

Dr Ayman Al Fudhaili, Acting CEO of the Industrial Innovation Academy affirmed that this agreement comes within the framework of “Development” program, which is one of the programs developed by the Academy to create Hi-Tech industrial complexes in various industrial cities managed by Madayn with the aim of localizing industries and attracting foreign investment to specialized cities.

“The Academy will establish according to this agreement a company for this project to develop and market the master plan of the plastic complex, in addition to creating an integrated ecosystem of incentives through the Research, Development and Testing Center. The company will also serve as an investment interface to bring investments and study, prepare and localize business opportunities,” Dr Ayman concluded.

OQ, Madayn, IIA, Plastic park, Sohar