Oman Economic Review – August 2018

COVER STORY

50 August 2018

I

n line with global trends, renewable

energy has made headway in Oman

in recent years. With an abundance

of sunshine, the Sultanate has

identified solar energy as a rational

choice of use moving forward. Wind

energy has also been identified as a

potential energy source in the southern

regions of the country.

To meet the increasing demand for

experts in renewable energy in Oman,

the GlassPoint Innovation Spur was

recently launched. The programme is

led by GlassPoint with support from a

host of trusted partners including The

Research Council (TRC), Innovation

Park Muscat (IPM), Public Authority

for SME Development (Riyada) and

Sharakah. Unlike other entrepreneurial

programmes, the GlassPoint Innovation

Spur offers a fully-fledged mentorship

and incubation programme connecting

young Omani innovators and aspiring

entrepreneurs with experienced

industry experts. Participants will

receive financial, business and technical

support to further develop their

concepts and transform them into

sustainable, implementable businesses.

Says Badar Al Sariri, senior manager

of project development and member

of GlassPoint Innovation Spur steering

board: “The GlassPoint Innovation

Spur is designed to provide an all-

encompassing experience to help

applicants mold their prototyped

inventions into real businesses. Post the

initial screening, ten will be selected

to take part in the three-month ‘Spur

Workout’ to test their inventions’

validity and commercial feasibility.

Up to three innovators will then be

selected to continue to the extensive

‘Spur Incubation’ phase. An initial

seed funding of up to RO45,000 will be

awarded to the three inventions for

further development and testing. Upon

graduating from the incubation phase,

they will be linked to investors for

growth and business upscaling.”

Innovation is increasingly important in

all areas of business and government.

SPURRING

INNOVATION

The GlassPoint Innovation Spur offers a fully-

fledged mentorship and incubation programme

connecting young Omani innovators and aspiring

entrepreneurs with experienced industry experts

Oman appreciates that independent

start-ups boost the economy

by identifying new sustainable

opportunities and redirecting resources

to them. With the GlassPoint Innovation

Spur, the company wants to give

aspiring innovators a focussed and

relevant body of knowledge in the

renewable energy sector and beyond.

Driving a culture of innovation,

entrepreneurship

GlassPoint’s Corporate Social

Responsibility (CSR) framework is based

on three pillars: economic, social and

environmental. Says Al Sariri, “We

integrate these pillars into our values,

culture, decision making, strategy and

operations to ensure accountability

and substantial contributions to

the community. We believe that a

responsible business is good business

and therefore, we approach CSR as a

process of continual improvement, while

facing new challenges and opportunities.

Consequently, The GlassPoint Innovation

Spur was launched to drive a culture of

innovation and entrepreneurship within

Oman’s renewable energy and water

management sectors.”

The programm’s themes include

renewable energy focussing on

renewable energy solutions for

domestic use, cooling and air-

conditioning systems, energy

efficiency, as well as enhanced energy

generation and storage. Another theme

is identifying solutions for water

management and collection techniques

for domestic use.

He adds, “With the application process

for GlassPoint Innovation Spur still

underway, GlassPoint aims to impact

Oman’s socioeconomic development

by providing long term value beyond

deploying solar energy on oilfields.

The programme is now accepting

applications until August 31, 2018 at

http://www.glasspointinnovationspur.com.”

Social pillar

GlassPoint’s first CSR pillar is

economical, which focuses on technology

and innovation, and how the company

can lead effective partnerships,

enabling and supporting SMEs, and

developing supply chain processes.

Says Al Sariri: “The social pillar takes

on knowledge development through

offering internships, encouraging

R&D research, as well as building

capacity and nurturing talent. As for

the environmental aspect, GlassPoint

is committed to meeting global climate

change goals by organising and

participating in volunteer initiatives and

raising awareness on renewable energy

and carbon footprint. GlassPoint’s