IPIC, OOC to develop Oman oil refinery 

(MENAFN) Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) entered into partnership with Oman Oil Company (OOC) to develop an oil refinery in Duqm, on the east coast of the Sultanate, Reuters reported.

The refinery, currently produces 230,000 barrels per day (bpd), is scheduled for completion by 2017, IPIC said in a statement without disclosing the value of the investment.

The two partners established a joint venture under the name of Duqm Refinery & Petrochemical Industries LLC to undergo the development process.

Oman government has seen Duqm as the next industrial growth city, with investments of up to USD15 billion planned in new petrochemical and infrastructure projects at the area's port over the next 10 years.

IPIC said that the second phase of the development will include a petrochemical complex.

The Omani port of Sohar, outside the vital Strait of Hormuz, where tensions between Iran and the West have been rising, has seen rapid growth in oil storage and shipping over the last few years.