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Bright scope for Oman’s mineral-based industries
By Hasan Kamoonpuri


OMAN, the second largest country after Saudi Arabia in the GCC, holds huge reserves of industrial rocks and minerals. The Sultanate’s non-metallic mineral resources are vast and varied. However, the scope for utilising the mineral wealth potential is still wide open for mineral-based industries. This avenue, which can boost the national growth and development, can be explored further through experts and consultants in this field.

Wadi Bani Khalid shale

The Directorate-General of Minerals (DGML), Ministry of Commerce and Industry has been conducting several significant studies and also drawn an inventory of commercially available industrial rocks and minerals in Oman with a view to encouraging the business community to work for a vibrant minerals-based industry. To cap it all, the ministry has now brought out a 164-page book, Industrial Rocks & Minerals in Oman: Development Possibilities, that spells out the various commercial applications that these minerals can be put to. The book has been authored by Dr Hayat A Qidwai, a geological expert at the Directorate-General of Minerals.
Dr Hilal Mohammed al Azri, Director-General of Minerals, feels that Oman’s geological assets, apart from contributing to the scenery, are blessed with vast reserves of industrial rocks and minerals in significant quantities. For most industries, about seven or eight industrial rocks and minerals are required namely; limestone, dolomite, gypsum, salt, silica sand/quartzite, kaolin and attapulgite. Fortunately, Oman has all of them in commercial quantities and can be utilised for value-added products like glass and ceramic items, chemical, fertilizers, abrasives, fillers, fluxes, and refractory, construction and insulation items.

There is a good potential for setting up large and small-scale industrial units based on these locally available resources. Various chemical industries based on salt, limestone, silica sand such as soda ash, caustic soda, sodium silicate, lime, calcium carbide and various glass products can be set up in addition to upgrading the low iron for steel production and other industries such as pottery, stoneware, thermal insulation, floor and wall tiles and refractories as noted by Dr Qidwai in the book.
The book outlines about 17 rocks and minerals which are arranged alphabetically. Oman has huge reserves of aggregate, a construction material. Aggregate deposits close to the coast become very attractive for exports.

Hadabin granite
Aggregate deposits are estimated at 12 billion tonnes in Buraimi region alone. Considering a low price of $3 a tonne, the total value of aggregate in Buraimi alone stands at $36 billion! Armor rock required in offshore construction work is also abundant in Oman, according to Dr Al Azri. Similarly, Oman holds billions of tonnes of gypsum reserves in the southern region of Saddah, Thamrait, Thuka’bayt, and Shuwaymiyah. Presently, gypsum is being mined at Thamrait in the southern region and at Ghaba in central Oman. Gypsum is a much sought-after mineral for a variety of applications such as cement, plaster board, and agriculture.
The DGML studies in Shuwaymiyah area confirm the existence of 165 million tonnes of gypsum. Currently, gypsum is mainly used for cement manufacture. There is no proper calcinations unit operating in Oman, a first step towards the various applications where this calcined gypsum can be used. Plaster boards produced from calcined gypsum are known to have many advantages over the concrete blocks in construction work. As of now only two companies are operating in gypsum exploitation.


Salt in Minjal Sabkha There are more than six areas where dolomite deposits can be found. Dolomite deposits in Oman are estimated at more than 500 million tonnes. Dolomite deposits in Shuwaymiyah coast alone stand at 84 million tonnes.

Since dolomite is inter-bedded with gypsum at Shuwaymiyah, mining of the latter will result in the mining of the dolomite as well. Quite a few companies from abroad have shown keen interest in Omani dolomite deposits for the production of magnesium, magnesia and for glass and steel manufacture Dr Hilal al Azri said.

Attapulgite, an absorbent clay, with total reserves estimated at more than 300 million tonnes to-date, is awaiting exploitation. There are deposits of attapulgite in the southern region.

Preliminary sampling and drilling of two holes in Shuwaymiyah area has shown good results. Attapulgite is also used for household animals with the trade name of pet litter and therefore holds out vast market in Europe and America. Limestone deposits of various characteristics occur all over Oman. Limestone is required in almost every industry — from aggregate and cement in construction to the chemical industry in the form of lime and in the form of filler in paint, plastics, agriculture, glass, pharmaceutical and various other industries. Limestone of low silica and with a physical property known as decrepitation index is required in steel production.

The DGML has drilled limestone deposits at two places in the southern regions of Rakoob and Shuwaymiyah areas. Rakoob limestone deposit is one of the best limestone deposits in Oman suitable for almost every industry. It has elicited interest from many foreign companies specially, Tisco (Tata Iron and Steel Co India) said Dr Al Azri. India requires about four to five million tonnes of limestone every year for their steel plants.

Limestone reserves at various places are huge. The DGML has already drilled three holes in two areas at Shuwaymiyah coast and has recorded encouraging results. Limestone being the backbone of most of the industries can be used in diverse enterprises and can fetch a value of as high as about 200 per tonne.

Price of the limestone depends mainly on its fineness, whiteness and purity. Currently Oman has four companies in limestone quarries. Scope for further exploitation of limestone and its export as a value-added item by new potential entrants, is promising.

Kaolin occurs in Oman at four locations. DGML evaluated two sites of these kaolin deposits in central Oman with reserves of more than six million tonnes.

Silicon metal ingot 99.99 produced from Salil quartzite
Oman’s Kaolin is high in iron and titanium therefore it can be used mainly in the production of ceramic tiles and it can also substitute bauxite in cement production. Northern and southern Oman is sprinkled with marble deposits. Oman exports marble to 23 countries with 70 per cent of the production being exported.

Similarly, huge commercial deposits of silica sand and quartzite exist in northern, central and southern Oman. Silica has applications right from the roadbed to the computer chip. Right now silica sand and quartzite is not being exploited to potential in Oman despite having a very wide range of applications. Currently, DGML is conducting techno-economic study at Wadi Baw and Abu Tan for silica sand/quartzite deposits. A comprehensive marketing study for various glass products in GCC countries is a part of this study.

Shuwaymiyah attapulgite Oman’s vast resources of salt, mainly used by the petroleum industry, are based on sea water, ground water (brine), salt domes, and bedded deposits. But only one company is using the ground water brine to extract salt in Safah area.

Other salt dome and bedded deposits require further exploration. Dr Al Azri stated that because of the recent huge demand for salt in the chemical industry, DGML is conducting some studies for the production of solar salt from sea water for various chemical industries.

Industrial Rocks & Minerals in Oman: Development Possibilities, clearly shows that many of these non-metallic mineral deposits are ready for exploitation and development. It should be emphasised that locally available low-cost raw material is available and has a significant advantage in terms of cost compared to the imported raw material.

As an example, Al-Anwar Ceramic Tiles factory is a success story, using 100 per cent locally available raw material and operating profitably for the past two years, said Dr Hilal al Azri. It is time for the private sector to come out actively to find out potential markets for these rocks and minerals and start rolling out innovative products.

From Oman Observer, 7th September 2004