Oman Power & Water Procurement Company (OPWP) is evaluating prequalification entries for the planned 800MW Misfah independent power project (IPP).

OPWP received prequalification entries from a number of major international developers in December, and is currently creating a list of qualified bidders before it issues a request for proposals (RFPs), according to sources close to the project.

The IPP will be located at Misfah, about 30 kilometres from Muscat International airport.

The project is part of Muscat’s efforts to ensure the sultanate’s utilities keep up with the rapidly growing consumption, with peak power demand expected to grow at 8-9 per cent a year until 2022.

In May 2016, a consortium of Japan’s Mitsui and Saudi Arabia’s Acwa Power signed the final contracts for the 3,219MW Ibri/Sohar 3 IPP, the sultanate’s largest IPP to date.