OQ Base Industries (OQBI) – Oman’s only integrated producer of ammonia, methanol and LPG products – has reported that its IPO has been oversubscribed ‘multiple’ times.
The Category II offer closes today (28th November) while Category I closes on 1st December. OQBI shares are expected to start trading on the Muscat Stock Exchange (MSX) on or around 12th December. Up to 49% of the company’s shares are being offered.
Azzan Al Abdullatif, Vice-President for Divestment and Transactions at OQ Group, said it has attracted investors from across the Sultanate, the region and international markets.
OQBI, located in the Salalah Free Zone in the Dhofar region, has three production plants and direct connection to OQGN’s gas network. Its ammonia operations, commissioned in 2022, have a production capacity of 365 Ktpa, around a third of its methanol operations which were commissioned in 2010.
The flotation is designed to ‘diversify the company’s shareholder base, expand its network of relationships and enhance its position among key stakeholders,’ according to the Times of Oman.
In line with Oman’s Vision 2040, OQBI’s approach to sustainability includes reducing its carbon footprint by ‘considering green hydrogen projects’ and managing water consumption efficiently.
The company is also focused on the sustainability of its operational framework, including the integration of renewable energy and efforts to manage and minimise environmental impacts across production processes.
Oman’s plentiful solar and wind energy and vast tracts of land make it well placed to produce large quantities of low-emissions hydrogen.
The Sultanate aims to produce at least 1 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen a year by 2030, up to 3.75 million tonnes by 2040 and up to 8.5 million tonnes by 2050, which would be greater than total hydrogen demand in Europe today.
Oman is on track to become the sixth largest exporter of hydrogen globally, and the largest in the Middle East by 2030, according to the IEA.
The 2040 hydrogen target would represent 80% of Oman’s current LNG exports in energy-equivalent terms, while achieving the 2050 target would almost double them.
Oil and gas today represent around 60% of Oman’s export income, and domestic natural gas accounts for over 95% of the country’s electricity generation.
