MUSCAT: The World Bank Group’s private sector arm, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), is positioning Oman as a credible hub for high-tech industrial investment through its backing of United Solar Polysilicon’s (USP) large-scale manufacturing project in Sohar, one of the most significant industrial financings in the Sultanate of Oman in nearly two decades.
The project marks a renewed engagement by IFC in Oman’s industrial sector, anchored in renewable energy supply chains and export-oriented manufacturing. In an exclusive interview with the Observer, Wendy Werner, World Bank Group Country Manager for the Sultanate of Oman, said the USP project aligns closely with Oman’s diversification and competitiveness agenda.
“The USP represents an important contribution to Oman’s diversification objectives,” Werner said. “It is also a significant contribution to the renewable supply chain in the region and globally, which means it has both strong development impact and commercial importance.”
The comments follow the recent signing of financing agreements under which IFC led a major debt package for the 100,000-tonne polysilicon plant at SOHAR Port and Freezone. While the agreement itself formalised IFC’s participation, the broader significance lies in the signal it sends to international lenders and institutional investors about Oman’s industrial readiness.
Beyond IFC’s own investment of about $250 million, the project mobilised a wide group of international and local lenders. Werner noted that IFC’s due diligence and standards played a catalytic role in crowding in capital. “Many of these lenders took comfort from IFC’s role in the project and to mobilise this volume of financing and equity,” she said, adding that IFC’s participation is often decisive in establishing bankability.
Polysilicon is a critical upstream input for solar photovoltaic manufacturing, and global production remains highly concentrated outside China. IFC views the Sohar facility as strategically important not only for Oman, but also for diversifying global supply chains amid growing geopolitical and trade risks.
As part of its engagement, IFC is also working with USP on advisory and benchmarking support to ensure the plant meets global best practices. “We work closely with USP on advisory engagement to achieve some of the best efficiency and environmental and social impact from this project,” Werner said. “That partnership early on has helped to achieve very strong impacts.”
She highlighted the project’s employment effect, noting that around 3,000 direct and indirect jobs are expected to be created. “This supports Oman’s objectives to have quality employment alongside economic diversification,” she added.
Werner said IFC’s involvement also serves as a broader signal to global investors assessing Oman as a destination for advanced manufacturing. “It definitely serves as an indicator of what Oman can do,” she said, pointing to the speed of execution, the ability to deploy new technology at scale, and the enabling infrastructure provided by Sohar Freezone. According to her, other large industrial and technology investors are already viewing USP as a benchmark for what is achievable in the Sultanate of Oman.
From IFC’s perspective, the longer-term test will be whether Oman can sustain momentum across the wider renewable and energy value chain. “Oman is already able to bring in very large-scale projects,” Werner said. “We see the renewable and energy supply chains as high potential here, as reflected in the government’s strategy and execution.”
For United Solar, the project represents a strategic bet on Oman as a globally competitive industrial base. Binyam Giorgis, Group CFO of United Solar Holding, said the company deliberately selected Sohar after assessing multiple locations worldwide. “We selected Sohar because of port access, the efficiency of Invest Oman and government processes, and the availability of reliable energy,” he said.
He described the plant as a critical asset for supply chain resilience. “Outside of China, there is very limited polysilicon capacity,” Giorgis said. “This factory will increase the resilience and diversification of the solar supply chain, making it a critical asset in the Middle East and globally.”
According to Giorgis, United Solar has raised around $1.6 billion for the project to date, including more than $900 million in recent debt financing led by IFC and local banks. “This financing is a strong statement about Oman,” he said, “bringing together global and local institutions to support a complex, high-tech industrial project.”
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