Oman’s Sultan has issued Royal Decrees assigning 12 mining exploration blocks with eight for exploration of virgin mining areas and four for mining, according to reports by Al Roya daily and other local media.

A total of 10 decrees were issued assigning 10 blocks to the country’s state-owned mining entity Mineral Development Oman (MDO) namely block numbers 11b, 12b-1, 13a, 13b, 23, 24, 52, 61a, 61b and 61C.

Mazoon Mining Company was assigned Area number 12A-1 while Amman Second Minerals Development was allotted Block number 12A-2.

Another decree allotted Maha Energy Oman, a subsidiary of the Sweden-based oil exploration and production company, 65 percent share in the oil exploration Block 70 while the rest would be held by Mafraq Power Company.

Maha Energy was allotted Block 70 in September 2020. The company was given  100 percent working rights in Block 70 with an option for Oman’s Oil Company to acquire up to 30 percent interest in the Block in case of a commercial discovery.

MDO and  the Ministry of Energy and Minerals are working together to manage the country’s mineral resources and develop the mineral resources by allotting large concession areas similar to oil and gas concessions.   MDO was granted 12 concession areas for exploration and mining covering 21,480 square kilometres for a period of 30 years in March 2022.