PSC, govt clinch deal on operation of Muscat port

CLEAR TERMS: The accord will help resolve concerns over the continued operation of Port Sultan Qaboos

Dec 28: Port Services Corporation SAOG (PSC) says it has agreed the terms of a deal with the government to ensure the uninterrupted operation and management of Port Sultan Qaboos in Muscat for an additional year beyond the expiry of the current licence on December 31, 2016.

The announcement came in a filing to the Capital Market Authority (CMA) yesterday. It follows a meeting convened at the Corporation’s headquarters in Muscat on Tuesday to discuss the terms of an agreement whereby PSC would rescind its recent decision to go into liquidation and continue to operate the port during 2017.

Present at the meeting were the Under-Secretary for Ports and Maritime Affairs at the Ministry of Transport and Communications, senior officials representing Oman Tourism Development Co (Omran), Mina Al Sultan Qaboos Waterfront Project and Marina Services SAOC, and high level officials of Port Services Corporation headed by the Chairman of the Board of Directors.

Citing resolutions adopted at the meeting, the Corporation said the Ministry of Transport and Communications acceded to its terms and conditions for running the port for an additional period of 12 months through to December 31, 2017. These terms have been set out in the Corporation’s letter to Dr Ahmed bin Mohammed al Futaisi, Minister of Transport and Communications, dated December 25, 2016, it said.

“Accordingly, the Corporation will continue to operate and manage Port Sultan Qaboos and will initiate all the necessary steps to obtain approval from the Capital Market Authority to convene an Extra Ordinary General Meeting of the shareholders of the Corporation in January 2017 to defer the liquidation of the Corporation,” Mohammed Osman El Hag Yousif, Company Secretary, stated in the filing.

Written confirmation of the accord reached on Tuesday will bring to a successful resolution the months-long saga over the continued operation of Port Sultan Qaboos ahead of its planned transformation into an upscale waterfront destination.

Omran has been given the mandate by the government to oversee the implementation of the Mina Al Sultan Qaboos Waterfront Project, envisaging a mix of hotels, apartments, upscale eateries and shopping areas, marina, fisherman’s wharf, local bazaar, and other attractions.

The Corporation said the Ministry of Transport and Communications acceded to its terms and conditions for running the port for an additional period of 12 months through to December 31, 2017.