Oman Investment Authority - The Times Of Central Asia

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Private Equity

Oman Investment Authority Plans $500 Million Fund for Central Asia and Caucasus

The Oman Investment Authority (OIA) and five other investment institutions have agreed to establish a private equity fund for Central Asia and the Caucasus that aims to raise $500 million. A letter of intent was signed in Beijing on October 20, with a formal agreement expected in early November 2026. The other participating institutions are China Investment Corporation and Shenwan Hongyuan Securities, both based in China; Uzbekistan’s Fund for Reconstruction and Development; Turkey’s Armed Forces Pension Fund, known as OYAK; and the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB). The initiative is led by OIA. The fund will be known as the Central Asia and Caucasus Private Equity Fund. An Omani company is expected to manage it. OIA has identified Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan as prospective investment markets. Priority sectors will include logistics, renewable energy, mining, agriculture, food production, and healthcare. The fund plans to acquire ownership stakes in regional companies, providing them with capital to expand their operations. The organizers will seek investment from sovereign wealth funds and other institutional investors, although they have not disclosed how much of the $500 million target has been committed. Daniyar Imangaliyev, deputy chairman of the EDB’s Management Board, said the fund would help regional companies expand into new markets while attracting additional international capital to the bank’s member states. The initiative builds on the EDB’s cooperation with Oman. On October 6, the bank and the sultanate’s Ministry of Finance signed an agreement governing the EDB’s operations in the country. This marked a step toward Oman’s potential accession as a shareholder of the bank, which would make it the first Gulf state to join.

Bank Membership

Oman Set to Join Eurasian Development Bank as First Gulf Shareholder

Oman is set to become the eighth shareholder of the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) and the first Gulf state to join the institution. An agreement was signed in Astana on October 6 during Sultan Haitham bin Tarik Al Said’s state visit to Kazakhstan. The EDB’s current shareholders are Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Oman would become the first member from outside the former Soviet Union. The agreement, signed by Omani Finance Minister Sultan bin Salim Al Habsi and EDB Chairman Nikolai Podguzov, sets out the terms of the EDB’s operations in Oman. “This agreement reflects our shared intention to build a bridge between Central Asia and the Gulf region,” Podguzov said. Russia remains the bank’s largest shareholder, although its stake was reduced from about 66% to 44.8% in 2023. By the end of June 2026, the EDB’s cumulative portfolio comprised 348 projects with total investment of $22.1 billion. The bank finances projects including transport infrastructure, energy, and digital systems. On October 6, Kazakhstan and Oman signed an agreement on the mutual protection of investments, while Samruk-Kazyna and the Oman Investment Authority agreed to establish a joint investment vehicle to finance projects. As a landlocked country, Kazakhstan is seeking additional routes to the Indian Ocean, and the two sides discussed using Omani ports to transport its goods. Oman has proposed developing a trade corridor through its seaports. The talks in Astana also covered direct air links and other logistics projects. Kazakhstan is seeking to increase exports of grain, meat, and other agricultural products to Oman. In 2025, honey from Kazakhstan was exported to the sultanate for the first time. On October 5, the two countries’ chambers of commerce signed a memorandum aimed at expanding business ties, including in agriculture and logistics. Founded by Kazakhstan and Russia in 2006, the EDB has gradually expanded its membership, most recently with Uzbekistan in 2025.

Trade and Investment

Oman Trade Corridor Could Link Kazakhstan to Indian Ocean

Kazakhstan could gain a new trade route to the Indian Ocean through Oman’s ports, offering an alternative to its traditional northern and Caspian corridors. Haitham bin Tariq Al Said, the sultan of Oman, raised the proposal during talks with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in Astana on October 6. He arrived in Astana on October 5, becoming the first Omani sultan to visit Central Asia “We look forward to developing cooperation in transport and logistics, including the development of a trade corridor through Oman’s ports, as well as strengthening air links between our countries,” the Sultan said. For landlocked Kazakhstan, Omani ports would provide another potential route to the Indian Ocean. Kazakhstan is already developing the Middle Corridor across the Caspian Sea and the South Caucasus, while Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and the United Arab Emirates are studying the CASA railway project through Afghanistan to Pakistani ports. No route, transit countries, cargo volumes, costs, or launch timetable have yet been announced for the Omani proposal. The talks came immediately after Kazakhstan signed an agreement aimed at settling a long-running dispute over Dunga, an oil field in western Kazakhstan near the Caspian coast. KazMunayGas controls a 60% interest in the project through Dunga Operating GmbH, while Oman Oil Company Limited and Thailand’s PTT Exploration and Production Public Company Limited (PTTEP) each hold 20%. The dispute concerned costs accumulated under the production-sharing agreement that Kazakhstan considered non-recoverable. On October 5, the Energy Ministry and KazMunayGas signed an agreement to resolve the disputed issues. The agreement will now be sent to the foreign partners, Oman Oil Company Limited and PTTEP, for signature. A new development plan for 2026-2039 provides for production of 67.4 million barrels of oil, as well as capital and operating investment. Omani capital is also present in Kazakhstan’s gold industry. Maaden International Investment, an Omani state-owned investment fund, held 31.7% of Solidcore’s voting rights as of March 31, 2026, making it the company’s largest shareholder. Solidcore operates gold-mining assets in Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan and Oman have assembled a portfolio of five major joint projects worth around $3 billion. Two projects totaling approximately $1.1 billion have already been implemented in the energy and railway sectors, while others, including ore-processing projects, are at various stages of development. Oman Investment Authority and Kazakhstan’s sovereign wealth fund Samruk-Kazyna are among the main partners. During the visit, Samruk-Kazyna and the Oman Investment Authority exchanged an implementation agreement on establishing a joint investment fund and a term sheet for a Rixos hotel project at Blue City in Oman. KazMunayGas and OQ Exploration and Production also agreed to cooperate on investment opportunities in oil and gas exploration and production. The package of agreements covered areas including transport, agriculture, technology, healthcare, mining, and renewable energy. Despite a joint investment portfolio measured in billions of dollars, merchandise trade between the two countries remains modest. On October 5, the Chamber of International Commerce of Kazakhstan and the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry signed a memorandum of understanding. Kazakhstan proposed expanding exports of grain, meat, and...