Oman’s Sohar Port has entered into a land lease agreement with Sohar Flour Mills aiming to build a new flour mill with a milling capacity of 500 tonnes per day of different types of flour, a report said.

Construction of the Sohar Flour Mills will start in the first quarter of the year on a 26,000-sq-m plot area near the port and the project is expected to be completed by 2017, the Times of Oman report added.

The new mill is expected to create more than 100 employment opportunities for Omani nationals.

"The flour mill will connect with the silos and agro-terminal planned at the port. The terminal's berth is ready since we are utilising the old container terminal (B) of the port, which has been moved to terminal C. One berth is dedicated as agro-berth," Jamal Aziz, chief executive officer of Sohar Freezone, was quoted as saying in the report.

"This opens an opportunity for dry-bulk food items such as food grains and rice,” he added.

A second contract was signed with the UAE-based Centre Point Logistics, which will take up the option of a plot at Sohar Freezone for the expansion of its logistics, warehousing, and storage facilities, the report said.

The facility is for setting up an industrial logistics centre, mainly pre-delivery of cars, logistics support for oil and gas and construction industries. The company will refurbish and distribute equipment for various industries.