Mining projects and initiatives with an investment value of over $2 billion have been identified for implementation by the private sector, according to the Public Authority for Mining (PAM) – the regulatory authority and nodal agency for the mining industry in the Sultanate.
The investment opportunities are linked to, among other things, the mining of gypsum, limestone, gabbro and aggregates, kaolin and silica quartz, said Hilal bin Mohammed al Busaidy (pictured), CEO of the Public Authority for Mining. It also includes an array of business opportunities at the upstream and downstream ends of initiatives centring on the mining and production of copper, chromium and ferrochrome commodities, he added in a statement on the Mining Lab that deliberated on strategies for accelerating investment in the mining sector in the Sultanate.
“The Mining Lab, organised by the Public Authority for Mining and supported by the
Implementation Support and Follow-up Unit, has come up with more than 43 initiatives and projects, with a value estimated at RO 813 million ($2.11 billion), 99 per cent of which will be shouldered by the private sector,” said Al Busaidy.
“These initiatives and projects are expected to increase the contribution of the mining sector to the GDP by three times the current contribution, to reach an estimated value of around RO 378 million ($981 million) by 2023. Besides, it will create no less than 1600 direct job opportunities for Omanis and raise the mining production of the Sultanate from 100 million tonnes in 2016 to 147 million tonnes by 2023.”
High-level officials from as many as 40 government, public and private sector organisations took part in the six-week-long Mining Lab, which was held during March-April last year, to brainstorm strategies and plans for unlocking the potential of the mining industry and thereby enabling its contribution to economic diversification and GDP growth.
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