26/04/2015 00:12 AST
London will soon host a conference about investment opportunities in Oman as British companies plan to expand their presence in the Sultanate's free zones. "The Omani-British Friendship Association is organising an investment conference in July in London," said Simon Burke, director of the UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) at the British Embassy in Muscat.
He was speaking on the sidelines of the recent opening of the new depot of Rapid Access, the Middle East's leading provider of powered access equipment and solutions in Jifnain. The company is part of the UK-based Lavendon Group, which is the world's largest specialist rental business.
"We do not have a huge presence in the free zones so we want to do more on that," Burke said, citing Duqm and Sohar economic zones as highly potential areas for investment.
He added that the British Ambassador Jonathan Wilks recently visited the Sohar industrial zone and was very impressed by the facilities and the amount of investment there.
Potential areas
British investments account for 70 per cent of the total foreign direct investment in Oman, Burke said, adding, "But we are not complacent. We want to do more."
Railway, logistics, fisheries, manufacturing and tourism are other sectors where there is untapped potential for further co-operation, he noted.
Burke also said that British officials are in the early stages of discussions with Oman to co-operate on the management of the mining sector given the UK's extensive experience in this field.
The aim is to maintain a win-win relationship with the Sultanate and working in partnership for the good of the country, he added.
Petrochemical plant
Asked about the latest updates on BP's project to set up a large acetic acid manufacturing plant in Duqm, Burke said that there is still a plan to do that.
The project will create a large number of job opportunities and will support small businesses in Duqm, he said.
Last year, Jamie Bowden, former British ambassador to the Sultanate, announced the oil giant's plans to establish the acetic acid manufacturing plant in Duqm using BP's new SaaBre process, with an estimated investment of over $1 billion.
BP has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Oman's Ministry of Oil and Gas to build the facility, which will be of strategic importance to Oman's economy, he said at the time.
Acetic acid is a versatile intermediate chemical, used in a variety of products, such as paints, adhesives and solvents, as well as in the production of purified terephthalic acid, used extensively for manufacturing polyester.
Times of Oman
Please wait...
