Oman’s OPWP plans 1,200 MW Concentrated Solar Power project

Oman Power and Water Procurement Company (OPWP) is considering the establishment of the sultanate’s first solar thermal project, a concentrated solar power (CSP) plant in Duqm that will be built if an existing proposal for a clean coal independent power producer (IPP) project in the area does not receive government approval before end-2019.

The CSP plant will have the same capacity as the IPP project’s planned output of at least 600MW, OPWP said in its Seven-Year Outlook Statement for 2019-25.

The IPP project’s 600MW capacity represents its first block, with full power reaching 1,200MW in 2026.

Requests for qualification (RFQs) for the IPP project have already been received, and requests for proposal (RFPs) were due to be issued in Q2 2019.

Were the Duqm IPP’s RFP not awaiting government approval, then proposals would have come in by Q4 2019, with awards due in Q2 2020, and a commercial operation date planned for sometime in Q2 2025.