Oman to pump $6.5B into water infrastructure projects

Oman is set to spend around RO2.5 billion ($6.5 billion) for the expansion and modernization of the sultanate’s water infrastructure over the next 25 years, a report said.

This comes as part of the government's ambitious strategy to design, develop and execute an efficient and secure water delivery system catering to the needs of the growing population and the diversifying economy, reported the Oman Observer.

Spending on new water infrastructure is envisaged at the rate of around RO150 million ($389.6 milion) annually over the initial 10 to 15 years of the tenure of the master-plan through to 2040, the report said citing a senior official of the Public Authority for Electricity and Water (PAEW).

"The investment will partly go towards the development of new networks to serve green-field areas being added to the water grid, while the balance will be used to finance the cost of renewing old, dilapidated transmission and distribution infrastructure," stated Guillaume Merere, the planning manager for PAEW.

As a result of the massive investments planned in the water sector, the total length of the distribution networks is projected to grow three-fold to around 30,000 km by 2040, said Merere.

Of this, around 22,000 km will be part of PAEW’s Main Interconnected System (MIS), he added.