MUSCAT: Hydrom – the orchestrator of Oman’s green hydrogen industry — scooped a prestigious ‘Impact’ award for the Hydrogen Project of the Year at a global green hydrogen summit held in London recently.
Hydrom, along with NEOM Green Hydrogen Company of Saudi Arabia, was named winner of the Impact Hydrogen Project of the Year 2025 at the Investing in Hydrogen 2025 forum — a two-day event that convened over 800 senior executives, including policymakers, utilities, oil & gas companies, developers, investors and technology leaders from more than 55 countries.
“This award honours outstanding projects that are driving significant progress and innovation in hydrogen production and utilisation. Both Hydrom and NEOM Green Hydrogen Company are making substantial contributions to the development of a thriving hydrogen economy and are helping to accelerate the energy transition. We were proud to celebrate their success and commitment to the future of clean energy!” the summit organisers announced in a post.
Earlier, Reham al Maimani, Director of Strategy and Markets at Hydrom, highlighted the state-backed company’s strategy to position the Sultanate of Oman as a global hub for green hydrogen production and export. Presenting on the theme, “Charting the Future of Hydrogen: Oman’s Open Market Approach and Global Opportunity”, she underlined Hydrom’s success thus far in garnering around $50 billion in international investment commitments across nine large-scale projects targeting a combined green hydrogen (gH₂) production of 1.5 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) by 2030.
The projects, marking the culmination of two successful auction rounds of land blocks, collectively envision the installation of around 35 gigawatts (GW) of upstream renewable capacity and 18 GW of electrolyser capacity.
Currently on the market for gH₂ development as part of Hydrom’s third auction round is a 300 km² land block near the Special Economic Zone at Duqm (SEZAD), Al Maimani said in her presentation. Interested developers or consortia have until October 31, 2025, to submit their Statement of Qualifications (SoQ), with final bids due by end-January 2026. An award is anticipated around the end of Q2 2026.
In a bid to galvanise deeper investor interest in the latest auction round, Hydrom has ramped up incentives and benefits, notably by waiving the requirement of a performance bond during the development phase — a move that eases early-stage financial pressure and enables broader participation. Additionally, opportunities for matchmaking are available during the auction stage, offering visibility into registered participants to support potential consortium building and early alignment among interested parties.
Furthermore, land fees during the development and construction phases have been reduced, while developers have been granted the option to supply surplus renewable electricity to the grid, subject to regulatory approval. This option was not available in the first two rounds.
Crucially, surplus gH₂ can be offered to new industries set up locally, while gH₂ derivatives can be sold to the domestic market and exported — moves that add greater flexibility in how investors secure markets for their end products.
In her presentation, Al Maimani also outlined five potential roles that international players could play in contributing to the growth of the local gH₂ economy. In addition to supporting the actual development and financing of primary gH₂ projects, there are also opportunities for international companies to invest in the manufacture of gH₂ equipment, participate in the construction and operation of common-user infrastructure; and explore the potential for industrial gH₂ offtake as well.
