FIEO, in association with SOHAR Port and Freezone, Oman, successfully organised an Interactive Session on Manufacturing, investment & Export Opportunities in Oman at the Embassy of the Sultanate of Oman, New Delhi, on September 16, 2026.
The session brought together Indian exporters, manufacturers and business representatives to explore manufacturing and investment opportunities, joint ventures and strategic partnerships, downstream processing and value-added manufacturing, SOHAR’s integrated industrial and logistics ecosystem, access to GCC, Middle East, African and global markets, and India-Oman trade and economic cooperation. B2B business engagements further enabled Indian companies to connect with SOHAR Port & Freezone and Omani business stakeholders to explore potential collaborations in trade, investment and manufacturing.
Speaking on the sidelines of the event, Dr Ajay Sahai said the India-Oman Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) could allow Indian companies to look at Oman not just as an export destination but also as a regional base for manufacturing, processing and distribution to other markets. Highlighting the role of SOHAR Port in such a strategy, he said its location, logistics connectivity and adjoining free trade zone could help Indian companies build operations in Oman and serve markets across the Gulf and East Africa.
“The strategic location of Sohar Port is important for our increasing trade, and since Sohar Port is a free trade zone along with the port, we should also look at investment and manufacturing,” Sahai said. He said Indian companies could explore sending intermediate products to Oman for further processing before targeting markets with which Oman has preferential trade arrangements, subject to applicable trade and origin requirements, adding that Indian exporters could take advantage of SOHAR’s free trade status to further process goods and export them onward to the US or GCC countries.
Sahai also pointed to warehousing as another area where Indian exporters could use Oman as a regional distribution base, saying that locating warehousing there would make trade with other GCC countries and East Africa significantly more cost-competitive, while also helping exporters manage logistics challenges and improve redistribution efficiency. He added that larger shipment volumes could further help exporters secure more competitive logistics costs.
On the CEPA’s services and mobility provisions, Sahai said the agreement covers trade, investment and services, noting that the limit for intra-corporate transfers of Indian professionals to Oman has been increased to 50% from the existing 20% ceiling, allowing companies manufacturing in Oman to employ Indian professionals for up to half their total workforce. He said such provisions, combined with Oman’s infrastructure and logistics connectivity, could be particularly useful for knowledge-driven sectors seeking to establish a regional presence.
The session marked another step in strengthening business linkages between Indian enterprises and Omani industrial gateways, opening new pathways to global markets.
