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OQ inks deals for the distribution of environmentally friendly fuel in Oman | |
| Staff Writer |
Agreements have been struck to perform a feasibility study for the development and delivery of green fuel in Oman by the Alternative Energy (AE) business unit of OQ, a globally integrated energy firm.
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Oman News Agency (ONA) reported that on the margins of the Oman Green Hydrogen Summit 2022, memoranda of cooperation (MoC) were signed with Asyad Group, A.P. Moller-Maersk, and Sumitomo Corporation Middle East. These MoCs stipulate that the parties involved will discuss the commercial and technical viability of providing and supplying green ammonia and green methanol in the ports of Duqm and Salalah for use in operating
According to Essam bin Nasser Al Sheibani, Group VP Sustainability at Asyad, the MoC would be implemented in two stages. Phase one entails conducting a feasibility analysis for integrating green zone projects into ports' preexisting infrastructure. As for the second step, he said it involved determining which commercially available fuel to utilise, which is especially important given the widespread usage of fossil fuels by ships around the world and the intense rivalry between ports that supply this commodity.
According to Al Sheibani of ONA, this research will put Oman on the global green fuel map. He explained that the green ammonia and methanol supply ports of Duqm and Salalah were chosen because of the availability of large plots of land and the potential to set up the greenest hydrogen projects in those locations. He also noted that this benefit will help down the price of carrying green fuel.
The Alternative Energy Business Unit of OQ also inked an MoU with the Oman Indian Fertilizer Company (OMIFCO) to investigate a strategy for establishing a carbon cycle economy (technologies and applications of carbon capture and storage). The strategy calls for recycled carbon to be used in an effort to increase national efforts to diversify energy sources.
The strategy seeks to examine the viability of manufacturing blue ammonia in the Wilayat of Sur and its usage in the company's industrial activities, as well as to contribute to Oman's carbon neutrality objective by 2050 using renewable energy technologies.
According to OMIFCO's Director of Strategic Planning for Sustainability, Qassim Mohammed Al Balushi, the MoU's stated goal is to utilise cutting-edge renewable energy and low-carbon technology to bring about in-house production of blue ammonia.