Over the last three years, Oman’s gas sector has undergone a rapid turnaround: from contemplating a future of natural gas imports, to record output. This turnaround is thanks largely to the late-2017 start-up of BP’s 1bn cfd Khazzan field – paying major dividends for state-led Oman LNG (Oman 51%, Shell 30%, Total 5.5%, Partex 2%, and four Japanese and Korean buyers holding the rest).

Production jumped from 8.60mn tons in 2017 to 10.4mn tons in 2018 – matching nameplate capacity – and last year the firm’s three LNG trains produced a record 10.7mn tons. “We reaped the rewards from investments in rejuvenation, debottlenecking, and the power project,” oil minister Muhammad al-Rumhy says in the firm’s 2019 annual report released this week. “This enabled us to deliver record cargoes and maintain our position as a trusted LNG supplier to our long-term customers and the wider market.” (CONTINUED - 694 WORDS)