Creating Oman’s Green Hydrogen Market: From Export Ambition to Domestic Economic Value 
This initiative captures the outcomes of a national multi-stakeholder roundtable convened by MCREEE on 25 October 2023, aimed at identifying how Oman can reduce green hydrogen development costs while increasing local economic participation across the full hydrogen value chain. The roundtable brought together 53 specialists from government, industry, finance, and academia, organized around four thematic pillars: Innovation & R&D, Capacity Building & Skills, Investment & Financing, and Regulatory & Policy Frameworks.

A central message emerging from the discussions is that the absence of a structured local hydrogen market is a key factor undermining cost competitiveness. The majority of participants (82%) agreed that limited domestic utilization increases hydrogen costs by weakening demand, reducing plant utilization rates, delaying economies of scale, and leading to underutilized infrastructure. Heavy reliance on exports also adds logistics and market-access costs, reinforcing the price gap between clean hydrogen and conventional alternatives. As such, the roundtable reframed local hydrogen demand not as a secondary option, but as a core economic lever for reducing costs and improving project bankability.

The discussions highlighted that creating a local hydrogen market—through industrial offtake, mobility applications, power generation, and public procurement—can establish a virtuous cycle. Early domestic demand enables higher capacity utilization, attracts private investment, accelerates infrastructure deployment, and lowers unit costs over time. In parallel, clear policy signals around priority hydrogen applications and offtake mechanisms were seen as essential to reduce investor uncertainty and unlock financing.

From a localization perspective, the roundtable identified several stages of the value chain where domestic participation can be maximized if local demand exists. Planning and development, procurement and installation, operations and maintenance, and grid integration were highlighted as high-impact areas for job creation and skills development. Manufacturing and material supply offer longer-term industrial potential, while end-of-life management and recycling—though currently limited—were recognized as future opportunities as hydrogen infrastructure scales. These localization pathways are significantly strengthened when hydrogen is consumed domestically rather than produced solely for export.

Financing discussions reinforced this linkage. Participants emphasized that bankability challenges stem not only from technology costs, but from uncertain revenue streams in the absence of local offtake markets. Clear demand-side policies—such as offtake mandates, tax incentives, green procurement, and predictable carbon pricing—were identified as critical tools to close the competitiveness gap, de-risk investments, and crowd in private capital across the value chain.

Overall, the initiative concludes that Oman’s green hydrogen ambitions will be more resilient, cost-effective, and economically beneficial if local market creation is treated as a strategic priority alongside export development. By anchoring hydrogen production in domestic demand, Oman can accelerate cost reduction, strengthen local value creation, and build a scalable hydrogen ecosystem that supports long-term diversification, energy security, and sustainable industrial growth.