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Oman opens new oil and gas blocks to boost energy security

The Ministry of Energy and Minerals has launched a new round of oil and gas concession offerings across the Sultanate of Oman.

TAS News Service

info@thearabianstories.com

Saturday, March 22, 2025

Muscat: Dr. Salah bin Hafiz Al-Dhahab, Director General of Investment at the ministry, announced that the latest concession areas—Block 18 (offshore in the Sea of Oman), and Blocks 36, 43, and 66 (onshore)—are now open for bids under a new concession system introduced through Scotchbank and AQP to encourage wider investor participation.


Speaking to the Oman News Agency, Dr. Al-Dhahab said several international companies in the exploration, drilling, and development sectors have shown strong interest in the bidding process. The application period remains open until June, after which negotiations will commence with selected bidders.

The revamped model includes key incentives aimed at overcoming geographical and climatic challenges in some blocks. These include:

A flexible royalty system to ease commercial operations
The option to include OQ B as a strategic partner
Opportunities to utilize produced gas for manufacturing or integrated projects

Dr. Al-Dhahab emphasized that the ministry’s strategy not only focuses on new exploration zones, but also aims to revive older fields facing production hurdles.

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