Oman plans to invite international oil firms to develop five onshore and offshore oil blocks in the country on a production-sharing basis, the Gulf state's oil minister said on Sunday.

"We will invite companies to develop two offshore and three onshore blocks," Omani Minister of Oil and Gas Mohammad bin Hamad bin Seif Al Rumhy told reporters on the sidelines of a function organised by Petroleum Development Oman.

"Hopefully, concession agreements for more than one block will be concluded before the year end," Rumhy said. The oil concessions are located between Musandam in the north and Salala in the south, the minister said.

Oman has been inviting multinational oil firms to help the Gulf state try to reverse a decline in crude oil production. The country expects oil output to rise to 790,000 barrels per day this year from 710,000 bpd in 2007, oil ministry undersecretary Nasser bin Khamis Al Jashmi said last month.

State-owned Petroleum Development would account for 550,000 bpd of this production.

India's Reliance Industries Limited signed a contract in November for a second exploration block off the Oman coast in the Gulf.

Swedish oil firm Tethys Oil said in February it expected to start production at an onshore block in Oman by mid-2009.-Reuters