Sunday 01 / June / 2025
New York: A new report by the SWF Global commended Oman Investment Authority (OIA) for strengthening Oman's global ties through targeted foreign investments, joint funds, and reinvesting divestment proceeds and returns into national projects.
This approach sets OIA apart from its peers, as it adopts a unique philosophy centered on the "Omani Angle" making it a foundational principle in its investment decision-making. SWF Global is a specialized organisation that focuses on tracking activities of state-owned investment organizations, including sovereign wealth funds, central banks, and pension funds worldwide.
The report highlighted OIA’s success in building an extensive network of strategic relationships by promoting the concept of economic diplomacy with various countries across the Middle East, Asia, North Africa, Europe, and the Americas over the past five years.
Among the most recent strategic partnerships is the signing of a joint fund agreement with Algeria worth USD 300 million, targeting investments in vital sectors such as mining, food security, and pharmaceuticals.
Additionally, OIA partnered with Turkey’s OYAK Fund to establish a joint investment fund valued at USD 500 million and launched a joint fund with Uzbekistan, which focuses on establishing a university in Tashkent in collaboration with Arizona State University of USA. Furthermore, OIA has invested in the Vietnam-Oman Investment Company, which has allocated nearly USD 400 million to projects in solar energy, infrastructure, healthcare, education, and food.
The report also noted that OIA’s focus is not limited to establishing strategic partnerships through joint investment funds alone, but also extends to direct investments in global companies, which primarily aim to localize advanced global technologies in the Sultanate of Oman, in addition to generating returns that are later reinvested into local projects.
Notable examples include OIA’s stake in Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence firm 'xAI, in addition to ‘Tidal Vision’, a US-based company offering cutting-edge technological solutions to address pollution and climate-related challenges in the agriculture and water sectors.
In the technology sector, OIA partnered with ‘Golden Gate Ventures’ of Singapore to establish a USD 100 million joint fund, leading to establish a local venture office in Muscat to manage joint investments between the two countries, and investing in local companies like ‘Bayanat’. Collectively, these efforts underscores OIA’s commitment to embedding the Omani angle across all its investments and partnerships.
Moreover, the report highlighted OIA’s policy to carry out strategic divestments from certain government assets, which contributed to revitalizing the Muscat Stock Exchange.
Among the most notable of these divestments was the initial public offering (IPO) of 25% of ‘OQ Exploration & Production’ shares in October 2024, which marked the largest IPO in the history of the Sultanate of Oman. The offering aimed to strengthen foreign investor confidence in the Omani market while also involving citizens in the transformational shift of Oman’s economy, in which OIA plays a central role.
The report further noted that since mid-2022, OIA has successfully divested from 19 assets, generating returns exceeding RO 2.7 billion. These included public offerings such as ‘The Pearl REIF’, ‘Abraj Energy Services’ and ‘OQ Gas Networks’, all of which witnessed demand surpassing the supply. These IPOs are not only about generating financial returns; they are also intended to inject liquidity into Oman’s financial markets, attract long-term foreign investment, and pave the way for future divestments.
Locally, the report discussed OIA’s efforts to strengthen its investments in the national economy through the National Development Fund (NDF), noting that total capital investment spending in local projects rose to RO 1.9 billion, surpassing the initial target of RO 1.7 billion. The report stated that the NDF represents 60% of the assets managed by OIA, and its investments are aimed at supporting the objectives of Oman Vision 2040.
Additionally, OIA established Future Fund Oman (FFO) with a capital of OMR2 billion, of which 90% is allocated to large direct investments in viable local projects, and 10% to small, medium, and emerging enterprises- with the latter portion exceeding US$519 million. The Fund focuses on sectors such as green energy, industry, and tourism to support the diversification of the Omani economy.
FFO has witnessed strong interest in its first year, attracting investments worth more than US$ 2 billion, 70% of which came from foreign investors, across ten priority sectors, including artificial intelligence, fintech, clean energy, and ICT. This approach has distinguished OIA from its regional counterparts, where investment strategies are predominantly focused on the oil and real estate sectors.
The SWF Global concluded its analysis by noting that the dual role played by OIA in strengthening Oman’s strategic partnerships while simultaneously advancing the national economy positions it to lay the foundation for Oman’s future economy.
This is achieved through the establishment of joint funds, localization of advanced global technologies, execution of a strategic divestment plan, and attraction of foreign direct investment. These efforts make OIA a model for transforming Gulf economies toward sustainable development and economic diversification.
