MUSCAT: Oman joins the rail bandwagon

Fahad Hamdan / 6 January 2013
Khaleej Times (Dubai)
The Sultanate of Oman has become the latest Gulf country to decide to build a national railway network. Announcing the decision to set up a company for the purpose, Dr Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Futaisi, Minister of Transport and Communications, said the company shall be fully owned by the government and would supervise all planning, design, tendering and construction of projects related to the railway lines and trains.

Al Futaisi said the move to establish a national railway company was a significant step towards a sustainable transport system in the Sultanate. He said the company would also help attract technical national cadre to the field.
He said the government has already decided to go ahead with the initial designing of a Duqm–Thumrait-Salaha railway line which would be incorporated into the first railway project that connects Dhofar. The company shall own, hire, purchase and sell the service facilities of the railway and associated projects and appoint operators of the network.
The minister said the company would also invest in the fields of transport of goods and passengers and all works associated with the railway network.
The Ministry of Transport and Communications would set up a Railway Department to formulate policies and regulations and monitor quality and safety regulations during the implementation of the project. The department would be an independent body concerned with regulating the railway sector in the Sultanate, Al Futaisi said.
The rail project is the biggest qualitative addition to the transport sector in the Sultanate and one of the development projects that would serve the national economy and enhance trade and investment, the minister said,
adding that said project would also play a vital role in fuelling economic growth at the national and regional level.
The railway would be designed to carry passenger trains with a speed of 200kmph and cargo trains with a speed of 80-120kmph. A study conducted by the ministry in cooperation with a consultancy company has recommended diesel fuel to power the trains.