Korea’s KOWEPO eyes April financial close for $940m Duqm Power Project

MUSCAT: South Korea’s KOWEPO (Korea Western Power Co), which is leading a consortium of investors co-developing a new gas-based power project at Duqm in the Sultanate of Oman, says it plans to achieve financial close on the estimated $940 million project by April this year.
Last week, the KOWEPO-led consortium was awarded a contract by Nama Power and Water Procurement Company (PWP), the country’s single buyer of power and water, for the implementation of an 877-MW combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power plant at Duqm.
Co-developers alongside KOWEPO, which holds a 35% stake, include Qatar’s Nebras Power (30%), UAE-based Etihad Water and Electricity (30%), and Bahwan Infrastructure Services of Oman (5%). In a statement, the Korean energy firm said it plans to establish a special purpose company (SPC) in Oman and complete financing by April, ahead of breaking ground on the Duqm project. The plant is scheduled to begin commercial operations in April 2029 and will operate under a 20-year contract.
Headquartered in Taean-gun, KOWEPO is one of six wholly owned generation subsidiaries spun off from Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), the country’s largest utility.
The company owns and operates multiple large thermal and combined-cycle power plants across western Korea, with total installed capacity accounting for around 8–9% of national electricity generation.
KOWEPO made its debut in Oman’s power sector in May 2023, when it secured a contract to develop the Manah-I Solar Independent Power Project, a 500-MW solar PV plant developed in partnership with France’s EDF Renewables.
Total investment in Manah-I amounted to around $542 million. The company also previously held an estimated 12% stake in HyDuqm, a green hydrogen and ammonia project backed by a consortium led by POSCO of South Korea and a French-based multi-energy firm. That project has since been scrapped.