Oman Power & Water Procurement Company (OPWP) has received proposals from consultants for the sultanate’s first planned waste-to-energy project.

The utilities company received proposals for the technical and economic advisory roles on a feasibility study for the planned project in late February, and, according to sources close to the scheme, is currently evaluating the proposals.

Under the contract, consultants will provide technical and economic advisory services for the waste-to-energy feasibility study, and if the feasibility study is successful, the consultants will provide advisory services for the competitive tendering of the project. The project is planned to be developed under the independent power producer (IPP) model.

The project is part of Oman’s efforts to diversify its fuel supply for power generation as it seeks to meet the growing demand for power generation.

MEED reported in December that Oman had started the procurement process for a major solar project. In February, OPWP received prequalification entries from 28 groups for a planned 500MW photovoltaic (PV) solar plant at Ibri.

The proposed IPP will be the second utility-scale renewables project planned in Oman, with the UAE’s Masdar announcing in 2014 it was planning to develop a 50MW wind farm in the southern part of the sultanate in partnership with the local Rural Areas Electricity Company (Raeco).