MUSCAT: Salalah Free Zone has signed a usufruct agreement with Majan Petrochemical Industries Company to establish an ammonium sulphate fertiliser plant with an investment exceeding RO 11 million.
The project, valued at about $29 million, will be developed on an area of 43,669.63 square metres and is expected to strengthen the zone’s chemical and downstream industries portfolio.
The agreement forms part of Salalah Free Zone’s efforts to attract value-added industries, expand industrial value chains and increase the contribution of manufacturing to the Sultanate of Oman’s economic diversification programme.
The planned facility will produce ammonium sulphate, a fertiliser widely used to improve soil fertility and support crop yields.
Its output is expected to serve regional and international markets, helping increase non-oil exports through the Port of Salalah and strengthen the presence of Omani industrial products abroad.
The project will benefit from the free zone’s location on major global trade routes, its direct connection to the Port of Salalah and access to markets across Asia, Africa and the Gulf Cooperation Council.
It is also expected to generate opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises operating in transport, logistics, engineering, maintenance, contracting and other industrial services.
The project could also support knowledge transfer and the adoption of modern fertiliser manufacturing technologies, while improving production efficiency and resource use in line with industrial and environmental standards.
Dr Ali bin Mohammed Tabouk, Chief Executive Officer of Salalah Free Zone, said the project represented a strategic addition to the zone’s chemical industries portfolio.
“This project reflects our focus on attracting investments capable of building integrated industrial value chains, rather than only establishing production facilities,” he said.
Tabouk said the zone was developing an industrial environment that allowed investors to benefit from integrated logistics infrastructure, services and access to target markets.
He added that demand for fertilisers was being supported by growth in global agricultural production, creating opportunities for Salalah Free Zone to expand its role in the sector.
The project would also use Salalah’s position as a logistics hub to connect producers with international markets and support national efforts to increase non-oil exports, he said.
The agreement was signed by Tabouk and Saeed bin Musa bin Noor al Junaibi, partner and Chairman of Majan Petrochemical Industries Company.
The signing ceremony was attended by Qais bin Mohammed al Yousef, Chairman of the Public Authority for Special Economic Zones and Free Zones. — ONA
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