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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

Oman Aviation Group cuts capex by 87pc

Muscat Airport 4
Muscat Airport 4
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Oman Aviation Group, the holding company of the state-owned airline, airport management and aviation-related businesses, has announced dramatic reductions in its operating and capital expenditures in response to the pandemic that has severely impacted the sector.


Operating costs are down 42 per cent, while capital expenditures have been slashed by 87 per cent, the Group said in a statement.


Since its founding in 2018, Oman Aviation Group has been actively empowering the aviation sector by implementing a series of operational efficiencies designed to generate economic benefits for the wider economy. Enabling travel and logistics, two key sectors that hold the promise of significant financial return for Oman and key levers of the sultanate’s Vision 2040.


“However, with the arrival of COVID-19, Oman Aviation Group was required to fast track its projects on several levels to safeguard national aviation assets and the adjacent sectors which depend on aviation. The formation of a Crisis Management Board at the onset of COVID-19 in Oman was key to getting ahead of the crisis and mitigating further financial harm to its ecosystem of aviation businesses impacted by a significant drop in demand for passenger travel. The result has been a 42 per cent reduction in operating costs, and an impressive 87 per cent reduction in capital expenditures,” it stated.


In line with recommendations set forth by the Supreme Committee entrusted with handling developments resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, Oman Aviation Group successfully addressed restrictions in air travel and reductions in air passenger demand by expediting its operational efficiencies to save costs and ensure the sector’s sustainability while at the same time implementing strategies that will ensure a strong recovery once borders reopen and demand for travel picks up.


These efficiencies have been carried over to a long-term plan that will see a more sustainable, fit-for-purpose aviation sector aligned with the new economic reality of a post-COVID world.


“Aviation is a crucial sector for Oman and one that contributed an estimated RO 1.69 billion to the country’s GDP in 2019. It remains an important economic catalyst that works as an enabling force, creating economic benefits that positively impact the country’s wider economy,” OAG further added.


 


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