OQAE Acquires 25% Stake in Oman’s Ibri III Solar Project

Underscoring its leading role in Oman’s clean energy sector, OQ Alternative Energy (OQAE) — a subsidiary of the integrated Omani energy group OQ — has secured a 25 per cent equity stake in the Ibri III Solar PV Independent Power Project, awarded recently to an international consortium led by Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company PJSC (Masdar).

Last month, Nama Power and Water Procurement Company (PWP) — the national procurer of new power and water capacity — signed agreements with the winning consortium for the development of a 500 MW solar PV plant at the Wilayat of Ibri in Al Dhahirah Governorate. A 100 MW battery energy storage system (BESS) — a first-of-its-kind in Oman — will also be built alongside the solar project.

OQAE, designated as Oman’s National Champion for Renewable Energy, will co-develop the Ibri III Solar IPP (since rebranded as Nour Ibri PV) together with Masdar (UAE), Al Khadra Partners (Oman) and Korea Midland Power Co Ltd (KOMIPO) of Korea. In addition, OQAE will play an active role in the operations and maintenance (O&M) of the project.

Significantly, OQAE’s securing of a 25 per cent stake in the Ibri III Solar PV project marks the start of a back-in arrangement committing Nama PWP to offer an equity stake of up to 25 per cent in all renewable energy projects floated by the national procurer. The move affirms OQAE’s pre-eminent role in decarbonizing the economy and catalyzing the achievement of Net Zero by 2050.

OQAE is actively advancing renewable energy projects, with over 10 GW of initiatives in its pipeline for implementation by 2035. These include projects designed to support the decarbonization of OQ Group subsidiaries and affiliates, as well as industries operating in Suhar, Al Duqm and elsewhere.

Additionally, as part of its mandate as National Champion, OQAE is supporting Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) in the decarbonization of its oilfield operations. It holds a 51 per cent stake in a joint venture with French multi-energy firm TotalEnergies for the development of three renewable energy projects within PDO’s Block 6 concession. The projects include the 100 MW North Oman Solar Project and the Riyah-1 and Riyah-2 wind schemes, each of 100 MW capacity.

Furthermore, OQAE is supporting the development of another 300 MW solar farm to supply clean energy to the Marsa LNG bunkering project, currently under construction at SOHAR Port and Freezone.

More recently, OQAE signed a joint development agreement with state-backed Naqaa Sustainable Energy Company to invest in a series of wind IPPs with a combined capacity of 1,100 MW in Al Duqm and the Wilayats of Mahout and Sadah in Dhofar Governorate. Wind turbines for these projects will be supplied by Mawarid Turbines, a subsidiary of OQ Group, which is currently developing Oman’s first wind turbine manufacturing plant at the Duqm SEZ.

Beyond PDO and Marsa LNG, OQAE’s customer base for its decarbonization programme also includes Oxy, Shell, BP and OQ Exploration & Production (OQEP), as well as industrial players such as Vale, Jindal and Sohar Aluminium.