Oman Economic Review – August 2018

6464 August 2018

O

man Oil Company (OOC), the

government’s investment arm

in the energy related sector,

has planned to divest part of

its stake in Block 61 and is looking at

privatisation of Abraj Energy Services

and a few others.

The divestment in Block 61 is among the

group’s initiatives for privatisation of

some of its subsidiaries, Eng Isam Saud

al Zadjali, CEO, OOC told reporters on

the sidelines of the OOC’s first media

gathering held recently.

The Block 61 comprises Khazzan and

Ghazeer gas developments. OOC, he

said is scouting for a buyer for 10 per

cent of its 40 per cent stake in Block 61.

Additionally, “We are studying plans to

privatise one or more companies next

year,” he added.

The CEO further said that OOC is

looking at foreign investments for its

future projects. “We have to think of

new projects. We are an investment

company and so obviously financing is

the name of the game,” he said. OOC’s

ongoing success in securing funding for

its various projects can be attributed to

the sound fundamentals of the group,

as well as the strong credentials of the

Omani government.

“We are honoured to have successfully

completed the financing for projects

such as Salalah Ammonia, Salalah LPG,

financing of the pre-export facility

of OOCEP and so on. Concluding the

financing at a level that is satisfactory

to us is a testament to the hard work

that the company has put in but more

importantly to the robustness of the

Omani economy”, he added.

OOC and its group of companies

have successfully raised funding

commitments of approximately

$11bn since January 2017 despite

the challenging global economic

conditions. This reflects the trust that

OIL & GAS

DIVESTMENT DRIVE

Oman Oil Company plans privatisation of some of its subsidiaries,

says Eng Isam Bin Saud Al Zadjali, CEO, Oman Oil Company at the

1st OOC media gathering