The overall amount of investment in the Al Mazunah Free Zone in the Dhofar Governorate has reached RO 140.17 million. Over the previous period, this has followed the attraction of eight different initiatives worth RO 165,000, which will cover an area of around 5,405.88 square meters.
Al Mazunah Free Zone's Director General, Eng. Ahmed Khamis Al Kasbi, told the Oman News Agency (ONA) that the zone has 172 lease agreements covering manufacturing, service, and commercial operations. The zone's administration is aggressively trying to entice industrial sector investments in order to maintain the flow of investment.
He stated that the zone is now completing arrangements for the operation of the animal quarantine facility in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Water Resources, and that test operations are anticipated to commence in the third quarter of 2025. In an effort to improve the area's infrastructure, the water desalination project is currently 70% complete and is expected to be fully operational in the fourth quarter of this year.
Al Kasbi pointed out that the free zone got over 137,000 tons of various commodities during the first half of 2025 (January–June), a 21% increase from the more than 113,000 tons received during the same time last year. At the same time, there was a 31% increase in the number of vehicles entering and leaving the free zone, from 2,223 last year to 2,921.
He continued by saying that the zone has published a tender announcement for a duty-free market management and operation initiative to specialized enterprises. The goal of this project is to encourage direct sales and offer services to tourists traveling between the Sultanate of Oman and the Republic of Yemen.
Notably, Oman is working to improve the competitiveness of its free zones at the regional level and draw in more domestic and foreign investment. The goals of this are to promote economic development, broaden the productive base, increase investment in industries with global added value, boost the contribution of non-oil industries to the GDP, and support the economic goals of Oman Vision 2040.
The first free zone in Oman, Al Mazunah Free Zone, is situated in the far southwest of the nation. The Wilayat of Al Mazunah is recognized for its economic growth, which places it among the promising wilayats in Oman's development and progress across several industries. It serves as the Gulf gateway for transit trade to East African nations via Yemen.
