Oman mining offers investment opportunities

MUSCAT, JUNE 17
The Sultanate of Oman continues to expand its offering of mining concession areas and attract quality investments, as part of its efforts to increase the mining sector's contribution to the GDP and achieve the goals of 'Oman Vision 2040,' which aims to diversify national income sources.
Offering new concession areas this year is an indicator of the growing confidence of investors and international partners in the Omani market. 2025 witnessed a qualitative shift in the sector through the signing of several mining concession agreements for copper, chromium, and salt, which will enhance future revenues and increase the sector's contribution to GDP.
According to Raya bint Abdullah al Abri, Director of the Concessions Department at the Ministry of Energy and Minerals, explained that the concession zone system provides broad investment opportunities by allocating areas exceeding 1,000 square kilometers per zone. This addresses the challenge of limited land area imposed by the previous system and is suitable for the nature of certain minerals and the requirements for their exploration.
She added that concession agreements grant investors legal terms ranging from 20 to 30 years, providing the necessary stability for significant capital injections and the implementation of long-term projects.
Al Abri noted that the Ministry implements an annual plan to offer three to four new concession areas for investment. She explained that the selection of areas is based on the availability of infrastructure, logistics, and roads, in addition to preliminary data concerning the expected mineral resources in each area.
She affirmed that investors seeking concessions are required to submit technical exploration work programs that include remote sensing studies, geological coverage, drilling operations, and seismic surveys. This ensures a scientifically and technically sound assessment of the mineral potential of the proposed areas.
Data from the Ministry showed that total mineral ore production in 2025 reached approximately 64.9 million tonnes, a 9% decrease compared to the previous year. This decline was attributed to a drop in building materials production by 8.7 million tonnes, which represents 46% of total production, as well as delays by some mining companies in submitting their monthly production reports.
The total quantity of mineral ores sold reached approximately 59.8 million tonnes, a 9% decrease compared to the previous year. This decline was also due to a decrease in building materials sales by 8.8 million tonnes, which the Ministry attributed to delays by some companies in submitting their monthly production reports.
Conversely, the total value of mineral ore sales rose to approximately RO 159 million, registering a 30% increase compared to 2024. Oman also regained its position on the map of copper production, export, and sales, with sales increasing by 392% in 2025 compared to the previous year. This growth was driven by improved operational performance and increased production efficiency at copper mining sites, as well as capitalizing on higher global prices and rising industrial demand for the metal.
By the end of 2025, the number of companies operating concession areas in the minerals sector reached 13, working across 27 mining concession areas. These areas contain key minerals including copper, chromium, potash, dolomite, gypsum, limestone, nickel, and cobalt. Last year, the mining sector saw the signing of six new concession agreements, with production reaching approximately 65 million tonnes, sales reaching approximately 60 million tonnes, investment value reaching RO 105 million, and copper ore exports reaching 95,000 tones. The percentage of digital services provided through the 'Taqah' platform reached 80%.