Oman Power and Water Summit, 2011

By Antonia Dimou

A series of topics ranging from investment in power and water infrastructure development to wastewater management strategies and renewable energy technologies was discussed at the “Oman Power and Water Summit” that was held on May 22-25, 2011 at the Grand Hyatt Muscat. The Summit was under the patronage of the Omani Public Authority for Electricity and Water, and brought together senior representatives from ministries and public authorities, power and water generation, transmission and distribution companies, renewable energy experts, international and local contractors, developers, consultants and suppliers to discuss the future of Oman’s power and water sector.

Since the market restructuring in 2005, the electricity and water sectors in Oman have benefited from public and private sector investment with significant levels of foreign direct investment in power and water production facilities. The Omani government’s decision to move away from publicly owned generation and transmission systems results in a host of opportunities for the private sector to get involved in the extension of the Sultanate’s utilities industry for the years to come. Specifically, the government is engaged in an ambitious programme that encourages the private sector to contribute towards an estimated 7.8 billion dollars worth of investment needed to bolster the sultanate’s power and water systems. In addition to increasing capacity, upgrades and technological improvements are also necessary to maximize efficiency of power and water transmission and distribution.

In this context, with all major projects and exciting developments in this particular industry sector, the “Oman Power and Water Summit” offered an invaluable opportunity for policymakers, industry professionals and leading industry players to get together and to learn from each other as they all contribute to the continued growth of the industry.

Participants in the Summit had the chance to review power and water demand forecast and upcoming projects, explore projects for future investment in Oman’s power and water sector, assess power generation and desalination resources required to meet fast growing energy demand, evaluate the privatisation process of generation, transmission and distribution networks, discuss the challenges in developing independent water and power projects, find out the latest developments and cost-effective technologies within the power and water industry, appraise the potential of renewable energy sources as a solution to the sultanate’s growing energy needs, and learn about best practices to improve environmental compliance of existing and new infrastructure.

The four-day Summit held two essential interactive workshops extended to ensure that attendees will get to the heart of the event’s most critical issues and uncover practical solutions that one can apply in his own company.

The first workshop entitled “Asset Management Capability Assessment and Roadmap for Implementation” examined the real benefits that asset management has brought to organisations worldwide, and presented effective strategies to maintain one’s assets in a fit-for-service condition, while also extending their life-cycle in the most reliable, safe and cost effective manner. During this interactive session, challenges, innovative solutions and best practices were discussed, and attendees undertook a mini asset management benchmarking exercise for their companies, which broadly assessed their competency level as measured against the key fundamental building blocks of best practice asset management. Attendees also discussed the preferred approach for organisations to undertake a full asset management review, and typical road maps for change, including time and resource management.

The second workshop entitled: "The scope of Further Liberalisation of Oman's Electricity and Related Water Sector and Development of the IPP/IWPP Models in GCC Electricity Markets" considered teh scope fro further market liberalisation.

The privatisation of power and water facilities remains a work in progress with a mixture of publicly owned and private companies operating under licenses granted by the industry regulator. The Sector Law that established the new electricity and related water sector market structure in 2005 includes provisions to facilitate further market liberalisation, including a liberalisation measure that would permit IPP/IWPPs to sell capacity and output to persons other than the Oman Power and Water Procurement Company.

Additionally, Oman’s vital power and water sector is entering a new phase in its aggressive development market by investments in world-class green-field power generation projects, by the potentials of waste-to-energy plants, the value of solar energy in oil production, and the status of pilot renewable energy projects that are currently being implemented in rural areas. During this interactive workshop, the implications and opportunities of further liberalisation for the IPP/IWPP market in Oman was discussed, and there was provision of the key requirements for the successful development of power generation and water desalination capacity.

Key speakers in “Oman Power and Water Summit” included the Chairman of the Omani Public Authority for Electricity and Water, Mohammed Abdullah Al-Mahrouqi, Chief Executive Officer of the Oman Power and Water Procurement Company (OPWP), Bob Whitelaw, the General Manager of Majan Electricity Company, Ahmed Bin Saif Al-Mazrouy, the General Manager of Wadi Al Jizzi Power Company, Zahir Al Bahri, the Director General of Projects in the Public Authority for Electricity and Water Zaher Khaled Sulaiman Al-Sulaimani, and Head of Power Systems Operation and Maintenance of the Petroleum Development of Oman, Mohammed Aghbari. Major sponsors of the “Oman Power and Water Summit” were the companies of Siemens, Wärtsilä, Future Pipe Industries, HBK Contracting, DYK Inc, ABB, Khimji Ramdas LLC, SolarTotal, Greenergy and General Electric.