Indian green ventures to find a base in Oman

CERTAINTY OVER TARIFFS and liberal mobility commitments have made Oman an attractive base for Indian companies to service global markets in energy-intensive sectors such as green steel, green hydrogen and ammonia, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Friday.

- FE BUREAU

"Logically, companies that require natural resources would be setting up bases in Oman. Already, in green steel, a large capacity is being set up by an Indian company," he said following the signing of the India-Oman Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). The agreement is expected to be operationalised in the next three months.

"These investments will provide opportunities and jobs for our Indian people. There is also huge potential for locating the processing of Oman's large volumes of marble there. There is a significant amount of investment interest in the education and healthcare sectors as well," the minister said.

Under the mobility provisions of the agreement, Indian companies will be allowed to staff up to 50% of their workforce in Oman with personnel from India, up from the current 20%, under the Intra-Corporate Transfer (ICT) route. This will enable firms to deploy a larger share of managerial, executive and specialist staff in their Omani operations. Personnel on ICT can now stay in Oman for up to four years, compared with 90 days at present.