India-Oman fund identifies three projects for investment

“The fund, which was jointly formed by the State General Reserve Fund (SGRF) of Oman and India’s largest bank, State Bank of India (SBI), has a scope for expanding the size of the corpus to as high as $1.5 billion. Last month, a meeting was held in Mumbai to discuss the projects that could be (initiated) under the corpus fund.

The initial investments will be made in pharmaceuticals, financial companies and aviation services for the maintenance and repairs of civilian aircraft,” the Omani envoy said. “Project proposals are invited from the companies and depending on the feasibility, they will be considered,” he added.

“A few other projects are under consideration. But, most likely, manufacturing ventures like chemicals, fertiliser units or utilities like power plants, which offer high returns, are likely to be included. Infrastructure projects and healthcare are the areas identified for investment at a later stage,” said a senior official.

Bilateral trade between Oman and India stands at around $2.5 billion. The bulk of Oman’s exports to India include oil, gas and fertilisers. The product basket is being expanded now with Indian companies importing limestone, chrome and copper.

The two countries have identified key sectors offering investment opportunities, namely engineering,

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