Key Takeaways
- • Oman Investment Authority (OIA), the Sultanate's sovereign wealth fund, signed its largest-ever package of investment agreements in a single day with Chinese institutions and companies, worth billions of dollars in total.
- • The investment fund component totals about $1.84 billion, led by an $800 million joint fund with China's Silk Road Fund, mostly invested in Oman, alongside a $300 million fund with China Merchants Bank and $735 million of partnerships with IDG Capital, Templewater and EW Partners.
- • Nama Holding and State Grid International Development agreed on 1 GW of battery energy storage valued at about $1 billion, while Minerals Development Oman signed a 10-year, $418.7 million mining services contract with Hongda International for the Mazoon copper and gold project.
- • The package was signed during Sultan Haitham bin Tarik's state visit to China, the first by an Omani Sultan, and was one of 23 agreements signed on 2 November 2026 at the Oman-China Investment Partnership Horizons Forum in Beijing.
- • OIA President Abdulsalam Al Murshidi said the agreements move bilateral relations from trade toward joint investment, local manufacturing and technology transfer.
Summary
Oman Investment Authority (OIA) has signed its largest-ever package of investment agreements in a single day with Chinese institutions and companies, according to reporting on the deals. The agreements were concluded during Sultan Haitham bin Tarik's state visit to China, the first by an Omani Sultan, and were one of 23 agreements signed on 2 November 2026 at the Oman-China Investment Partnership Horizons Forum held at Bank of China's headquarters in Beijing.
The investment fund component is the largest element, totalling about $1.84 billion. It is led by an $800 million joint fund with China's Silk Road Fund, with most of its capital earmarked for Oman. The package also includes a $300 million fund with China Merchants Bank and $735 million of partnerships with IDG Capital, Templewater and EW Partners covering clean energy, digital technology, smart manufacturing and utilities.
In energy, Nama Holding and State Grid International Development agreed on 1 GW of battery energy storage valued at about $1 billion. Per the reporting, State Grid already holds 49% of Oman Electricity Transmission Company, and Nama Holding said earlier this month that the projects are in Duqm and Ibri. Separately, O-Green and Shanghai Electric Wind Power Group agreed to build a wind R&D centre and turbine test site in Duqm and to pursue green ammonia, with no value disclosed, and a $100 million solar partnership will combine solar development with inverter manufacturing in Oman, with the parties not named in the release.
In mining, Minerals Development Oman and Hongda International signed a 10-year mining services contract valued at $418.7 million (RO 161 million) for the Mazoon copper and gold project. Hongda will handle open-pit mining at Yanqul, including drilling, loading, hauling, ore delivery to the processing plant and road construction. Mazoon, Oman's largest copper concentrate project, is due to begin production in 2027.
Other agreements cover logistics, digital and space. Asyad Group and JD.com plan logistics facilities at Muscat Airport Free Zone, Khazaen Economic City and Sohar Free Zone, linking Oman with GCC and East African markets. Omantel signed an MoU to deploy Ascend neural processing units and high-performance computing, and a separate MoU covers Oman's government digital transformation programme. Space agreements include a 'Space Silk Road' arrangement to develop, launch and operate seven satellites in phase one, training for 1,000 Omani specialists, sponsorship for 30 Omanis to pursue postgraduate studies in China, and a joint space AI laboratory. Values for the digital, space and logistics agreements were not disclosed.
OIA President Abdulsalam Al Murshidi said the agreements show Oman-China relations moving from trade toward investment partnerships that will support economic diversification, future industries, jobs and knowledge transfer.
The investment fund component is the largest element, totalling about $1.84 billion. It is led by an $800 million joint fund with China's Silk Road Fund, with most of its capital earmarked for Oman. The package also includes a $300 million fund with China Merchants Bank and $735 million of partnerships with IDG Capital, Templewater and EW Partners covering clean energy, digital technology, smart manufacturing and utilities.
In energy, Nama Holding and State Grid International Development agreed on 1 GW of battery energy storage valued at about $1 billion. Per the reporting, State Grid already holds 49% of Oman Electricity Transmission Company, and Nama Holding said earlier this month that the projects are in Duqm and Ibri. Separately, O-Green and Shanghai Electric Wind Power Group agreed to build a wind R&D centre and turbine test site in Duqm and to pursue green ammonia, with no value disclosed, and a $100 million solar partnership will combine solar development with inverter manufacturing in Oman, with the parties not named in the release.
In mining, Minerals Development Oman and Hongda International signed a 10-year mining services contract valued at $418.7 million (RO 161 million) for the Mazoon copper and gold project. Hongda will handle open-pit mining at Yanqul, including drilling, loading, hauling, ore delivery to the processing plant and road construction. Mazoon, Oman's largest copper concentrate project, is due to begin production in 2027.
Other agreements cover logistics, digital and space. Asyad Group and JD.com plan logistics facilities at Muscat Airport Free Zone, Khazaen Economic City and Sohar Free Zone, linking Oman with GCC and East African markets. Omantel signed an MoU to deploy Ascend neural processing units and high-performance computing, and a separate MoU covers Oman's government digital transformation programme. Space agreements include a 'Space Silk Road' arrangement to develop, launch and operate seven satellites in phase one, training for 1,000 Omani specialists, sponsorship for 30 Omanis to pursue postgraduate studies in China, and a joint space AI laboratory. Values for the digital, space and logistics agreements were not disclosed.
OIA President Abdulsalam Al Murshidi said the agreements show Oman-China relations moving from trade toward investment partnerships that will support economic diversification, future industries, jobs and knowledge transfer.
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