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Oman offers 300 square kilometres in hydrogen land auction

30 April 2025

Oman is offering interested green hydrogen and derivatives developers 300 square kilometres of land in Duqm under the third round of its hydrogen land block auction programme.

Hydrogen Oman (Hydrom), the sultanate's green hydrogen projects orchestrator, launched the third round of its auction at a virtual event on 30 April.

Abdulaziz Said Al-Shidhani, Hydrom managing director, confirmed on the same day the availability of the request for qualification (RFQ) documents that interested bidders can download from the round three auction website.

A land block of up to 300 square kilometres has been offered in Duqm, inviting proposals for projects covering a minimum of 100 square kilometres, Hydrom said.

It added: "Bidders will have flexibility in defining their project footprint within the block, enabling tailored configurations that align with individual development strategies and market requirements."

Hydrom expects to issue the request for proposals in June and receive final bids for the contracts by the end of January 2026.

This timeline will provide "ample time for comprehensive project planning", said Al-Shidani.

For this round, developers may also explore the sale of surplus renewable electricity to the national grid, subject to regulatory approvals, maximising project value and integration into Oman's wider energy transition framework, according to Hydrom.

Hydrom aims to attract firms that fit the following profiles in its third-round auction:

  • International, regional and local renewable developers
  • Financial partners
  • Engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) and hydrogen equipment providers (OEMs)
  • Strategic offtakers and investors
  • Infrastructure developers

Hydrom has so far awarded several land blocks for green hydrogen projects since it started the auctions in 2023.

Five projects in Duqm have been awarded to the following firms:

  • Amnah: A consortium comprised of Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, Blue Power Partners and Al-Khadra, part of Oman’s Hind Bahwan Group. The project is expected to develop approximately 200,000 tonnes a year (t/y) of green hydrogen from 4.5GW of installed renewable energy capacity for planned green steel plants located in the Port of Duqm, within the Special Economic Zone at Duqm (Sezad) 
  • Green Energy Oman: A consortium comprised of Oman’s integrated Energy Company OQ, Shell Oman, Kuwait's state-backed energy investor EnerTech, Singapore-based InterContinental Energy and Golden Wellspring Wealth for Trading. This project will produce 150,000 t/y of green hydrogen from 4GW of installed renewables capacity 
  • BP Duqm Hydrogen: This project has an anticipated annual production of 150,000 t/y of green hydrogen from 3.5GW of installed renewables capacity for ammonia production and export.
  • HyDuqm (Hydrogen Duqm): A consortium comprised of South Korea's Posco and France's Engie, MESCAT Middle East, Samsung Engineering, Futuretech Energy Ventures, Korea East-West Power and Korea Southern Power. This project is expected to produce more than 200,000 t/y of green hydrogen by 2030, utilising over 5.2GW of combined wind and solar energy to produce and export ammonia
  • Hyport Coordination Company: A consortium consisting of OQ Alternative Energy, Belgium's Deme Concessions and BP Oman. This project will produce more than 50 t/y of green hydrogen by 2029 in its first phase

The three land block projects that have been awarded in Salalah are:

  • Salalah H2: A consortium comprised of OQ AE, Japan's Marubeni Corporation, UAE-based Dutco Overseas and South Korea's Samsung C&T. One of the so-called legacy Initiatives that signed term sheets in March 2023, the project is set to produce over 1 million t/y of green ammonia, with an expected production of over 175,000 t/y of green hydrogen.
  • EDF, J Power, Yamnah: A consortium consisting of France's EDF Group, Japan's J-POWER and UK-based Yamna, which aims to produce approximately 178,000 t/y of green hydrogen by 2030, using approximately 4.5GW of wind and solar energy coupled with battery storage and approximately 2.5GW of electrolysers. 
  • Actis – Fortescue: The project will involve the construction of up to 4.5GW of wind and solar renewable energy resources that will power electrolysers with the potential to produce up to 200,000 t/y of green hydrogen a year. 

Oman’s comprehensive energy transition efforts also include the development of a dedicated 2,000-kilometre hydrogen pipeline as well as the establishment of the world’s first liquid hydrogen export corridor linking Oman to the Netherlands and Germany and onwards to Europe.

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Jennifer Aguinaldo

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