Oman Unveils Groundbreaking Carbon Capture Facility, a First for the Arabian Peninsula
MUSCAT, Oman — In a landmark development for regional environmental policy, Oman has officially inaugurated a state-of-the-art carbon capture and storage facility, marking the first such industrial-scale operation on the Arabian Peninsula. The facility, located in the port city of Duqm, is designed to sequester up to one million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually from liquefied natural gas production.
Who: The project is a joint venture between the Oman Oil and Orpic Group and international energy technology firm Schlumberger.
What: The new Carbon Capture and Storage, or CCS, plant will prevent CO2 emissions from entering the atmosphere by injecting them into deep geological formations beneath the Gulf of Oman.
When: The facility became fully operational on Tuesday following a three-year construction and testing phase.
Where: The plant is situated at the Duqm Special Economic Zone, a strategic hub for Oman’s energy and logistics industries.
Why: Sources indicate the initiative is central to the Sultanate’s goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 and diversifying its economy away from fossil fuel reliance.
How: The process involves capturing CO2 from natural gas processing streams, compressing it into a dense fluid, and transporting it via pipeline to injection wells approximately two kilometers underground.
The International Energy Agency has commended the move, citing it as a critical benchmark for decarbonization efforts across the Middle East region. Financial details of the investment were not publicly disclosed, but analysts estimate the project cost exceeds 400 million Omani rials.