The Gulf region is the fastest growing railway market sector in the world, according to Dr Ahmad Bin Mohammad Al Futaisi, Oman’s Minister of Transport and Communications.
Speaking at a two-day ‘Investment Opportunities Forum — Railway Project’, which ended on Monday, the minister said: “I have seen countries in the region mark major development in the diversity and integration of their transport systems including roads, sea and airports, but what was most prominently absent is railways.”
Al Futaisi reckons that there is an opportunity for 100 billion Omani riyals investments for planned 40,000 kilometres of railways for the region in the foreseeable future.
“There is no doubt that today’s transport system represents the vital nerve of any modern economy and that the development and integration of this system, as well as emphasising the availability of alternatives and enhancing competitive opportunities, is a must if we want to reserve for ourselves a place at the forefront,” he said in his speech.
“It is among our goals here to turn railway stations into concentrated areas of regional trade and value-added industries, transforming Oman into a magnet and a favourite destination among shipping-lines and passengers,” Al Futaisi noted.
Meanwhile, a key government official overseeing the ambitious project said, in his speech, that a contract for the construction of the first segment of the Oman National Railway Network — covering the Buraimi-Sohar segment — is due to be awarded before the end of next year.
The roughly 171-kilometre segment, inclusive of spur lines to Buraimi and the Sohar railway yard, constitutes a key part of the Oman component of the GCC Railway Network. This segment is due to be brought into operation in 2018 along with the rest of the Gulf-wide rail network. “We have every ambition to award the (Design & Build) contract for the Buraimi-Sohar segment before the next year,” said Abdulrahman Al Hatmy, Director of the Oman National Railway Project.
“This is in line with our commitment as part of the GCC Railway Project,” the official told government-owned Oman Daily Observer.
The 2,244-kilometre national railway network comprises the following nine segments: Segment one — Sohar to UAE border (Al Ain), Segment two — Al Sunainah to Sinaw, Segment three — Sinaw to Duqm, Segment four — Duqm to Salalah, Segment five — Sohar to Muscat, Segment six — Al Misfah to Sinaw, Segment seven — Sinaw to Ibra, Segment eight — Thamrait to Al Mazyounah, and Segment nine — Sohar to Oman’s border at Khatmat Milahah.
