International Finance Corporation (IFC), a World Bank Group member, has signed three agreements to bolster Oman'ssustainable finance market and empower the private sector to drive job creation and economic diversification.

The first agreement includes a sustainable finance investment of up to $120 million in Oman’s National Finance Company (NFC), which is IFC’s first investment in Oman’s non-bank financial sector in nearly two decades.  

The loan will expand access to sustainable finance for NFC’s retail and small and medium enterprise (SME) clients, supporting projects in clean transport, renewable energy, and energy and water, IFC said.

The agreement with Future Fund Oman (FFO), an initiative of the Oman Investment Authority, will support non-oil investments. The deal will explore, develop, and co-invest in key sectors, including green manufacturing, clean energy, tourism, logistics, agribusiness, and healthcare.  

The third pact is with United Solar Polysilicon to support the development of a $1.6 billion greenfield polysilicon plant in Sohar. It will have a planned capacity of 100,000 tonnes per annum and significantly diversify the global solar energy supply chain. 

The agreements form the key pillars of the government’s Oman Vision 2040 plan, which focuses on economic diversification.  

 IFC has invested and mobilised nearly $10 billion to help more than 70 GCC-based companies over the last 10 years.  

(Editing by Seban Scaria seban.scaria@lseg.com)