meed-logo

line1 line2 line3
SIGN IN / REGISTER

Oman eyes first green hydrogen offtake this year

5 February 2025

Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

One of the consortiums that won Oman’s green hydrogen land block auctions is expected to reach an offtake agreement sometime this year.

“We are expecting to announce an offtake agreement hopefully sometime this year,” said Rumaitha Al-Busaidi, business development manager at Hydrogen Oman (Hydrom), the main orchestrator of Oman’s green hydrogen programme.

Hydrom has signed land concession agreements with teams led by Denmark’s Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, South Korea’s Posco and France’s Engie, Japan’s Marubeni, France’s EDF, and a team comprising London-based Actis and Australia’s Fortescue in the first two rounds of its land auctions.

Oman has also signed what it refers to as legacy projects with other teams led by Belgium’s Deme, BP and Shell.

A long-term offtake agreement for the products produced by these facilities is the main requirement for reaching a financial investment decision (FID), which the majority of the consortiums aim to achieve by 2027, except for the Deme-led Hyport Duqm, which aims to reach FID in 2026.

Al-Busaidi also said they expect to launch the third round of Oman’s green hydrogen land auctions before the end of the first quarter of 2025. 

They are fine-tuning the next auction process and considering several options, including one similar to the first two auctions, where land parcels were auctioned for the production of green hydrogen and derivatives, including ammonia, methanol and sustainable aviation fuels, among others.

The other option being considered is auctioning land parcels for downstream industries that offtake green hydrogen and its derivatives, including green steel, fertilisers and other sectors.

A final option is a so-called double-sided auction to facilitate contracts between domestic green hydrogen producers and downstream offtakers.

In December, MEED reported that Oman was making good progress compared to other states in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region that are looking to establish green hydrogen hubs to help decarbonise key industries in fossil fuel-scarce jurisdictions globally.

“We are doing very well,” Abdulaziz Al-Shidhani, managing director of Hydrogen Oman (Hydrom), told MEED, noting that Oman has signed legally binding, 47-year project development agreements with eight consortiums under the Hydrom public auction and its legacy programme. 

Each consortium is understood to have aligned with the sultanate’s goal of having a green hydrogen production capacity of 1.4 million tonnes a year (t/y) by 2030 by committing to deliver a capacity of 150,000 t/y by the end of the decade.

Alternative derivatives

Hydrom is exploring a liquid hydrogen collaboration with another European-based entity, the Port of Amsterdam, to deliver liquid hydrogen to the Netherlands and other perceived demand centres in Europe, as well as to markets in Asia – primarily Japan, South Korea and Singapore.

While most of the project development agreements signed by Hydrom and the developer consortiums expect ammonia to be the primary derivative, Al-Shidhani says liquid hydrogen has recently been emerging as a viable alternative, with potential uses for the product including applications in the mobility sector and as a maritime fuel.

“Developers and end-users are exploring all technologies and assessing the feasibility of other alternative derivatives,” he says. He adds that cracking ammonia back to hydrogen, as originally envisaged by most projects, involves high costs.

Creating local demand

While the assumed markets for the output of the planned multibillion-dollar projects in Dhofra and Duqm are overseas, Oman’s long-term objective includes attracting foreign direct investments in the entire green hydrogen supply chain, including solar and wind turbine production and manufacturing.

“We will enable the platform to foster a sustainable supply chain and it will be up to the private sector to determine suitable strategies, which we are assuming will be export-focused in the early phases of the projects,” Al-Shidhani says.

MEED understands that the 2030 green hydrogen production target will require up to $50bn of investment, including 18GW of electrolyser capacity and 35GW of renewable energy capacity.

READ THE FEBRUARY MEED BUSINESS REVIEW

Trump unleashes tech opportunities; Doha achieves diplomatic prowess and economic resilience; GCC water developers eye uptick in award activity in 2025.

Published on 1 February 2025 and distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the February MEED Business Review includes:

> WATER & WASTEWATER: Water projects require innovation
https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/13365445/main.gif
Jennifer Aguinaldo

Register for MEED's guest program now to access this article.

Click here to register
Exclusive from Meed
Related Articles
  • PDO allows more time for Al-Ghubar field project prices

    17 August 2026

     

    Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) has allowed contractors additional time to prepare commercial bids for a project to build a new facility to handle additional oil production from the Al-Ghubar field in the sultanate.

    The Al-Ghubar field is located in the Ghaba Salt Basin at Qarn Alam, within majority state-owned PDO’s Block 6 concession area.

    The Al-Ghubar gas-oil gravity drainage (GOGD) facility will be designed as a sour (hydrogen sulphide) facility and is expected to handle maximum oil production of 1,800 standard cubic metres a day (cm/d), a maximum total water flow rate of 10,421 standard cm/d, and maximum gas lift of 256,934 standard cm/d. Production from the planned Al-Ghubar GOGD facility will be exported to PDO’s main oil line.

    Following receipt of the technical bids for the project in July, PDO granted contractors additional time – until 16 August – to submit commercial bids for the project, MEED recently reported.

    The project operator has now extended the deadline for submitting commercial bids to 1 September, sources told MEED.

    PDO floated the tender for the Al-Ghubar GOGD facility project in March, setting an initial bid submission deadline of 4 May, MEED previously reported.

    PDO later extended the deadlines for submission of technical and commercial bids to 26 July and 7 August, respectively. Contractors submitted technical proposals by the revised deadline, according to sources.

    The following contractors, among others, are understood to be bidding for the project:

    • Archirodon (Greece)
    • Engineering for the Petroleum & Process Industries (Egypt) / Petrojet (Egypt)
    • Jereh (China)
    • Kent (UAE)
    • Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon (India)

    The scope of work on the Al-Ghubar GOGD facility project covers the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the following:

    • On-plot scope consists of:
      • Production separator  
      • Test separator  
      • Concentric wash tank
      • Wet oil pump
      • Water bath heater
      • Surge tank
      • Gas injection/gas lift compressor (centrifugal)
      • Utilities (Instrument Air compressors, chemical injection skids, drain system, vent system) 
      • Suction scrubber
      • Air coolers
      • Discharge scrubbers
      • Condensate flash drum
      • Atmospheric pressure knock-out drum 
      • Flare system
      • Gas heater
      • Water disposal pump
      • Oil shipping pump
      • New 132kV substation and plant substation (housing 6.6kV & 415-Volt switchboard)
      • New control room
         
    • Off-plot scope consists of:
      • Off-plot pipeline network (bulk header, test header, gathering infrastructure/ gathering line header, instrument air header, water disposal header)
      • Two remote manifold stations 
      • Tie-in connection to main oil line
      • Tie-in to gas network pipeline

    PDO previously intended to tender the Al-Ghubar GOGD project under its framework structure with selected EPC contractors, but eventually tendered it separately.

    PDO is the operator of the Block 6 hydrocarbons concession in Oman, which is the sultanate’s largest and most prolific concession. Situated onshore and covering an area of 75,119 square kilometres, Block 6 contains 202 oil fields and 43 gas fields, with PDO producing a total of approximately 680,000 barrels a day (b/d) of oil and condensates from those fields.

    The Omani government holds a 60% stake in PDO through Energy Development Oman (EDO). The other shareholders are UK-based Shell (34%), France’s TotalEnergies (4%) and Thailand’s state-owned PTTEP (2%).

    ALSO READ: PDO floats tender for major flare gas monetisation scheme
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/18799485/main.jpg
    Indrajit Sen
  • Design contract awarded for Algerian gas project

    17 August 2026

     

    Indonesia’s Synergy Engineering has been provisionally awarded a design contract for a planned gas project in Algeria.

    The front-end engineering and design (feed) contract was awarded by Pertamina Algeria Eksplorasi Produksi (PAEP), which is a subsidiary of Indonesia’s state-owned energy company.

    The contract was awarded by PAEP in association with Algeria’s national oil and gas company Sonatrach and Spain’s Repsol.

    Sonatrach, Pertamina and Repsol are partners in Block 405a of the Menzel Ledjmet Nord (MLN) field.

    The feed contract covers developing a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) plant and a water injection facility at the MLN field as part of the field’s fifth development phase.

    Block 405a is situated onshore in the Illizi-Ghadames Basin in eastern Algeria. It comprises eight oil and gas fields split over three onstream development areas.

    Algeria is home to Africa’s second-largest proven natural gas reserves after Nigeria. It is also Africa’s largest natural gas producer.

    Amid ongoing issues exporting oil and gas from the GCC due to disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, Algeria is seeking to increase its oil and gas exports to meet European demand.

    In July, Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune oversaw the signing of dozens of bilateral agreements as part of a wider push to bolster political and economic ties between Germany and Algeria.

    The agreements included several focused on oil, gas and energy.

    On 2 July, Sonatrach delivered its first shipment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) directly to Germany’s Wilhelmshaven 1 floating LNG import terminal.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/18756842/main.jpg
    Wil Crisp
  • Contractors win construction packages for Egypt’s Ras El-Hekma

    17 August 2026

    Egypt’s Rowad Modern Engineering has announced that it has won new contracts to undertake construction works on two packages at the Ras El-Hekma master development on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast.

    Ras El-Hekma’s master developer, Modon Holding, awarded the contracts.

    The first contract covers construction works for Area 2 of the Wadi Yemm basement. The scope includes constructing multilevel basement structures that will support upcoming developments at the site.

    Rowad Modern Engineering is delivering the project in a joint venture with Lebanon’s Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC).

    The second contract covers substation works, to be delivered in a joint venture with local contractor Elsewedy Electric.

    Wadi Yemm is the first of the 17 planned precincts to move into active delivery. It is a mixed-use cultural and hospitality district, anchored by the Ras El-Hekma Lighthouse and a 10,000-seat amphitheatre, designed to host cultural and entertainment programmes.

    Ras El-Hekma is located on a spur of land on Egypt’s northern Mediterranean coastline, about 240 kilometres west of Alexandria.

    Abu Dhabi-based holding company ADQ appointed Modon Holding as the master developer for the Ras El-Hekma project in 2024. Modon will oversee the overall development, which covers more than 170 million square metres (sq m).

    Modon will develop the first phase of the project, covering 50 million sq m. The remaining 120 million sq m will be developed in partnership with private developers under the supervision of the recently established ADQ subsidiary Ras El-Hekma Urban Development Project Company and Modon.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/18790805/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Dubai tenders stormwater drainage projects

    14 August 2026

    Dubai Municipality has issued three tenders for stormwater and sewerage infrastructure projects serving Hind City, Dubailand and surrounding areas.

    The projects cover drainage networks for Hind 4, connections to the stormwater network in Dubailand and a stormwater trunk line serving Hind 3, Hind 4 and Umm Al-Daman.

    The three tenders were issued through the municipality’s Sewerage and Recycled Water Projects Department.

    All three have bid submission deadlines of 10 September.

    Hind 3 and Hind 4 are two of four zones within Hind City. The Dubai government renamed the Al-Minhad area and surrounding areas as Hind City in 2023. The 83.9-square-kilometre area is served by Emirates Road, Dubai–Al-Ain Road and Jebel Ali–Lehbab Road.

    The DS-316-C1 project covers the construction of sewer and stormwater networks in Hind 4. The stormwater network will include gravity drainage pipelines with diameters of up to 1,600 millimetres (mm), while the sewer network will include pipelines of up to 800mm.

    The TF-24-C1 project will connect developers’ areas in Dubailand to the stormwater network. It includes 18 kilometres (km) of stormwater drainage pipelines with diameters of up to 1,800mm and 3.5km of gravity sewer pipelines with diameters of up to 1,000mm.

    The TF-25-C1 project involves the construction of a 9.2km stormwater trunk line serving Hind 3, Hind 4 and Umm Al-Daman. The trunk line will include gravity drainage pipelines with diameters of up to 2,800mm. It will also serve main roads along its alignment, including sections of Dubai–Al-Ain Road, and is designed to accommodate stormwater flows from part of Emirates Road.

    The projects are intended to strengthen flood resilience and improve the reliability of Dubai’s drainage infrastructure.

    Latest awards

    Dubai has continued to accelerate investment in stormwater infrastructure under the Tasreef programme in recent months.

    In July, MEED exclusively reported that Dubai Municipality had awarded the estimated $100m engineering, procurement and construction contract for the TF-15-C1 package of its Tasreef rainwater drainage network programme to local firm DeTech Contracting.

    The municipality has also recently awarded the TF-15-C2 and DS-204-C1 packages to China State Construction Engineering Corporation and Nael Construction & Contracting, respectively.

    The overall masterplan aims to expand Dubai’s rainwater drainage capacity by 700% by 2033 and serve the emirate for the next century.

    READ THE AUGUST 2026 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

    Saudi Arabia builds for the global stage; Rising uncertainty creates fresh set of challenges in the Maghreb; Gulf banks remain robust in the face of geopolitical tensions.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the August 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

    > MARKET FOCUS: Maghreb fortunes diverge
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/18585485/main.jpg
    Mark Dowdall
  • Construction completed on $8.5bn Neom hydrogen project

    14 August 2026

    Construction work on the $8.5bn Neom Green Hydrogen project at Oxagon in Saudi Arabia is complete, and the facility has entered the commissioning stage ahead of commercial operations targeted for 2027.

    Neom Green Hydrogen Company (NGHC), a joint venture of Saudi-listed Acwa, US-headquartered industrial gases group Air Products and Neom, is developing the project.

    Acwa’s chief financial officer, Abdulhameed Al-Muhaidib, said during the company’s recent H1 2026 earnings call that construction has been completed and commissioning activities are now under way.

    “It’s really more now into commissioning and the target to go into commercial operation next year,” he told investors.

    The project is designed to produce up to 600 tonnes a day of green hydrogen, which will be converted into green ammonia for export. It is supported by about 4GW of solar and wind power generation capacity, with the renewable power that is generated being used to produce hydrogen through electrolysis.

    As previously reported by MEED, Air Products is also the exclusive offtaker for green ammonia produced at the facility under a 30-year agreement.

    NGHC said in March that its renewable power generation assets, including the wind and solar farms, and transmission grid, had reached approximately 95% completion.

    India’s Larsen & Toubro (L&T) is the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for the project’s renewable energy and transmission and distribution package.

    L&T’s EPC scope includes a 2,200MW solar plant, a 1,370MW wind farm, a 400MW battery energy storage system and a transmission network extending 190 kilometres.

    The project reached financial close in 2023. Once operational, the facility is expected to produce up to 1.2 million tonnes a year of green ammonia for export.

    READ THE AUGUST 2026 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

    Saudi Arabia builds for the global stage; Rising uncertainty creates fresh set of challenges in the Maghreb; Gulf banks remain robust in the face of geopolitical tensions.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the August 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:

    > MARKET FOCUS: Maghreb fortunes diverge
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/18567177/main.jpg
    Mark Dowdall