Renewable energy backed
Investments in tourism and logistics
Loans totalling $310 million to support Oman’s economic diversification plans have been agreed by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a part of the World Bank Group that seeks to encourage private sector development in less developed markets.
The loans, arranged by the Omani Ministry of Finance, are to support three Omani companies, with a particular focus on renewable energy.
Oil currently accounts for about 55 percent of the Omani economy.
Creating jobs for about 25,000 Omani entrants to the workforce each year is a priority for the government.
“This IFC initiative to help local manufacturing companies will certainly help create jobs in Oman,” Said Al Kathiry, director of Muscat Manpower Agency, told AGBI. The IFC offers investment, advisory and asset management services.
The first loan recipient is the local publicly listed National Finance Company, which in turn will finance renewable energy and water projects. This loan will mark the IFC’s first investment in Oman’s non-bank financial sector in nearly two decades, it said.
The second recipient is the state-run Future Fund Oman (FFO). The loan will support investments in clean energy, tourism, logistics and agricultural projects.
FFO was launched last year by the state’s Oman Investment Authority. It funds local companies that make non-oil products, and has a budget of around $5 billion.
The third recipient is United Solar Polysilicon (USP), which operates greenfield projects mainly in renewable energy.
“The agreements aim to bolster the country’s sustainable finance market and empower the private sector to drive sustainable growth through job creation and economic diversification,” the IFC said on its website.
The IFC did not break down the loan amount by recipient.
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