Oman Logistics Company (Khazaen), the master developer of an integrated logistics city in South Al Batinah Governorate, is looking for a strategic partner for the development of an initial 10-sq-km plot, a report said.

The plot will serve as a springboard for the hub’s long-term growth, said the report in Oman Daily Observer.

The partner will be an experienced local or international player with the requisite financial and technical strength. An invite to participate in a competitive tender in this regard is expected to go out next week, the report said.

The strategic partner will masterplan, finance, build and operate certain assets within the 10-sq-km block earmarked for this initiative, Salim Said Al Rawahi, operating and engineering manager of Khazaen, was quoted as saying in the report.

“These assets are primarily commercial, industrial and tourism related, for which the selected partner will have to build the required infrastructure,” he added.

The 10-sq-km site represents roughly a tenth of the sprawling 95-sq-km Khazaen development, which is designed to drive the sultanate’s ambitions to evolve into a logistics-centric economy.

As master developer of Khazaen, Oman Logistics Company is overseeing the development of a logistics destination envisioning residential, leisure and retail components as well. In addition to transshipment cargoes, Khazaen will also serve as a one-stop hub for warehousing and storage, logistics, consolidation of goods, maintenance or road and rail cargo carriers, and customs clearance services, the report added.