As well as restructuring the conventional power industry, and adding significant water capacity, the Oman government is in the midst of a major shift towards renewable energy.  Our energy and utilities team acts for clients from across Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and the US on all types of complex, large-scale projects and transactions in Oman’s power and water industry in addition to oil and gas. They advise financial institutions and multilateral lenders, project developers, government and state owned entities, and contractors and service companies on the procurement, development, financing, operation, privatisation and restructuring of independent power projects (IPPs), independent desalination projects (IWPs) and dual purpose power and water plants (IWPPs) in Oman.

 

Our lawyers have a deep level of industry knowledge gained over decades advising on the majority of IPPs, IWPs and IWPPs structured on the public-private partnership model that Oman has pioneered in the region. Many of these include industry ‘firsts’ such the Al Manah IPP, the first in the Middle East in 1996, and Barka 1, Oman’s first IWPP. Their expertise encompasses commercial bank and ECA-led financings, public share offerings in power and water companies, acquisitions and disposals, power purchase agreements, fuel supply, transmission and distribution arrangements, construction, engineering and O & M contracts, environmental law as well as dispute resolution.

The team has advised the successful bidders in connection with the development, financing, design, engineering, construction, ownership, operation and maintenance of the Barka Sohar IWPs and lenders on Ghubrah 3 IWP, Sharqiyah IWP, Salalah IWP, Ibri Sohar IPP, Qurayyat IWP, Salalah II IPP, Sur IWP – Expansion.  AMJ advises Musandam Power Company, the owner of the only permanent power plant using natural gas as primary fuel servicing the electricity demand of the Musandam region.

 

In Oman’s renewables sector, AMJ has advised the successful bidders and their lenders on Oman’s first solar IPP 100MW project, Project Amin. The team has also advised international consortia bidding on the 500MW Ibri solar PV project and state-owned Rural Areas Electricity Company in respect of the development, design, engineering, construction, procurement, ownership, operation and maintenance of a greenfield 50MW wind power plant developed jointly with Masdar of Abu Dhabi. Other recent work includes assisting the government of Oman in restructuring its holdings in the electricity sector and the privatisation of its transmission and distribution companies and advising international consortia bidding on 1,000 MW Manah Solar IPPs.