Leading Omani petroleum investment company OQ has annouced the successful commissioning of one of the country's vital energy extraction projects, the OQ Liquified Petroleum Gas plant.

The facility has been built at a total investment of $826 million in the Salalah Free Zone as per the highest standards in safety, quality, and technical integrity. The lean gas plant boasts an 8 million standard cu m per day capacity.

It consists of an extraction plant, a fractionation facility, storage tanks, shipping facilities, and an interconnection pipeline system.

Once fully operational, it will produce around 304 kilo tons per annum (KTA) of LPG products composed of 155 KTA of Propane (C3), 111 KTA of Butane (C4), and 38 KTA of Condensate (C5+).

Marking this important milestone, Sultan bin Ali Al Burtumani, VP Business Development OQ Downstream, said: "OQ LPG plant is positioned as a strong contributor to national economy through achieving the best utilization of natural gas resources to extract liquified gas, this will help in meeting the LPG needs of Dhofar governorate and southern Oman in general."

"OQ LPG will further uplift our standards to provide better quality services for our clients and optimize stakeholder value. OQ is joining hands with Ministry of Energy and Minirals to maximize the extraction of NGLs, “the richer molecules within the natural” for petrochemical industries developments,” he added.

According to him, OQ LPG plant’s production is expected to reach a total of 300,000 MT per annum. The plant holds immense potential in terms of revenue generation, In-Country Value (ICV) and community development.

Besides deriving economic value through propane, butane and condensate sales, the plant will generate potential downstream business such as petrochemicals.