LIFT-OFF: How Oman built a space economy in three years

Over the past three years, the Sultanate of Oman has announced a succession of monumental and unprecedented space projects.
From the establishment of Etlaq, the MENA region’s first commercial spaceport, Zone 88, a fully integrated space economic zone in Al Duqm that will include a space settlement centre and advanced technology facilities, or Spazers, a multinational satellite manufacturing joint venture in Oman which will localise the production of small satellites and other space-related technologies in country, the Sultanate of Oman has undoubtedly maintained strong and steady momentum in the sector.
However, what makes this momentum particularly striking is how recent Oman’s entry into this space has been. In just three years, since the unveiling of Oman’s Space Policy in 2023, the Sultanate of Oman has transitioned from laying the foundations of a national space sector to building an active and robust market.
Earlier this year, government officials confirmed this momentum, announcing that investments within Oman’s space sector, valued at RO 20 million between 2023 and 2024, had increased by 200 per cent. The sector had also created around 400 direct and indirect jobs in the country, while the number of companies operating in the sector also grew by 127 per cent, reaching 25 by the end of 2025.
But how was the Sultanate of Oman able to achieve this in just under three years?
The answer lies primarily in strategic planning and in the way Oman positioned space not as a standalone ambition, but as part of a wider national economic transformation.
To understand the shift, it is necessary to go back to 2021, a year after the ascension of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik to power. Under Oman Vision 2040, the National Programme for Digital Economy was introduced as a pathway for economic diversification.
The programme aims to raise the contribution of the digital economy to the local GDP from 2% currently, to 5% by 2030 and 10% by 2040, as part of Oman’s efforts to reduce its dependence on hydrocarbons. As a result, a national space plan was introduced under this wider umbrella.
In 2023, the government, represented by the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology, released the National Space Policy and Executive Programme, a 10-year framework designed to develop a commercially oriented and competitive Omani space sector.
The policy set a clear vision for Oman: to become the regional gateway for space applications to empower economic diversification and unlock future opportunities.
Built on four main pillars: economic diversification, capacity building, national security; and environment and natural resources, the framework crucially identified where Oman could compete.
Capitalising on Oman’s strengths such as strategic geography, open diplomacy and regulations, while aligning with global market trends, the policy prioritised investments within the downstream space sector, declaring it the country’s entry point into the global space sector.
The downstream sector, which includes terrestrial space operations and services such as Earth observation, satellite communications and navigation, accounts for around 90 per cent of the global space market, contributing $303.3 billion in 2021. It is also expected to grow at around 6 per cent CAGR over the decade.
By contrast, the upstream sector, which includes the manufacturing, launch and operation of space systems, accounts for a smaller share of the market, around 10 per cent.
Furthermore, the Sultanate of Oman’s focus on the downstream sector was also rooted in the country’s pre-existing market base. Prior to the launch of the policy, Oman’s preexisting space sector was concentrated downstream, with satellite communication and navigation services representing 95% of total market value, contributing to 0.05% of the local GDP with a market value of $155 million as of 2021.
As a result, the framework identified 14 investment opportunities, mostly concentrated in the downstream and application-led activities, aimed to fulfil the four main pillars of the programme.
The opportunities were not only designed to create projects, but to support the growth of a wider local space ecosystem. According to the framework, this would be achieved by establishing conditions for a vibrant, sustainable and competitive space ecosystem, while providing sustained support for private sector establishments.
At the same time, the framework places strong emphasis on attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to accelerate the development of the national space sector, particularly through long-term collaborations that will allow for technology transfer and the building of local expertise.
The opportunities were divided into core and non-core projects, while 8 were labelled as quick-wins. Core projects were defined as must-haves to pursue Omani space sector development, while non-core projects were identified as opportunities that would accelerate Oman’s space sector development
However, the framework did not approach these opportunities in isolation, but instead placed them within a three-phase roadmap designed to gradually develop and build up domestic capabilities, starting with the development of downstream activities in an effort to move progressively upstream in the future.
The first phase of the programme, “Ignition”, ran from 2023 to 2026 and was designed as the sector’s preparation stage. It focused on building capacity, legal frameworks and infrastructure while stimulating the national ecosystem of service providers and national market expansion.
The phase included several projects, including the end-user applications booster programme, national space data platform, incubation programme, world conference, centre of excellence for space applications, space cloud partnership, ground stations hub, direct receiving station and national CubeSat programme.
Meanwhile, the second phase “Lift-Off”, running from 2026 to 2030, aims to develop the required infrastructure (in space and on the ground) to support expanding Oman’s space sector capabilities and business opportunities. The phase includes the national Satcom initiative and the national space observatory projects.
Finally, phase 3 — “Orbiting” — running from 2030-2033, aims to prepare Oman’s space sector for its next development cycle by starting investments in more complex systems and capabilities. This phase includes projects such as the regional Satnav augmentation system, launch site partnership and satellite R&D programme.
Several of these projects have already begun taking shape. Etlaq, the MENA region’s first commercial spaceport, is expected to begin full-scale commercial operations by the end of 2027, marking a major step in Oman’s move towards developing launch capabilities from within the Sultanate of Oman.
Oman’s first satellite, Aman-1, has also moved into practical use, with its data being used to monitor and track the country’s gas networks operated by OQ Gas Networks. Meanwhile, Oman Lens launched OL-1, an AI-powered Earth observation satellite designed to monitor landscapes, infrastructure and natural resources, while also announcing plans for another advanced satellite in 2026.
Zone 88 has also moved into construction in Al Duqm, further strengthening the Sultanate of Oman’s efforts to create a fully integrated economic space zone. At the same time, Oman has hosted the Middle East Space Conference twice, turning Muscat into a regional platform for dialogue, partnerships and investment in the sector.
This momentum was further reinforced by Oman’s signing of the Artemis Accords with the United States during the second Middle East Space Conference in Muscat, marking a step towards deeper international cooperation in civil space exploration.
Simultaneously, Oman was building the legal and regulatory foundations needed to support the emerging market. This began taking shape in 2024, when Oman Lens became the first company to obtain a Telecommunications Regulatory Authority licence to establish a satellite ground station in the Sultanate in Oman.
In 2025, the regulatory track advanced further with the Civil Aviation Authority’s introduction of Civil Aviation Directive (CAD 5-01), a commercial spaceflight framework setting out the approval process for launch activities from Oman. Officials have also pointed to the forthcoming Omani Space Law, expected in 2026, as the next step in strengthening the sector’s legislature.
Taken together, these developments show that Oman’s space economy was not built through isolated announcements, but rather through a gradual and carefully calculated strategy. This phased approach in turn explains how Oman was able to record rapid growth in a short period.
As the programme moves from the “Ignition” phase into “Lift-Off”, the coming years will test how far this early momentum can be translated into commercial value. Nonetheless, as it stands, it is clear that Oman is ushering in a monumental new era for its space economy, one that carries significance not only for the Sultanate of Oman, but also for the wider region and the global space sector.