SOHAR Port and Freezone has marked the official start of construction of the Oman Zinc Industrial Park, a US$ 50 million zinc recycling and processing facility being developed by Oman Zinc LLC within the SOHAR Freezone. The groundbreaking ceremony was held under the patronage of His Excellency Sheikh Saif bin Khaled Al Raisi, Member of the Shura Council representing the Wilayat of Liwa. Located on a 100,000 square metre site within SOHAR Freezone, the facility will establish an integrated zinc recycling and processing operation spanning material recovery, refining, and the production and export of Special High Grade zinc ingots and zinc oxide. Once fully operational, the facility is expected to produce approximately 100,000 tonnes of refined zinc ingots and 50,000 tonnes of zinc oxide annually, serving customers across the GCC, India, Pakistan and wider international markets. The project will be developed in two phases. The first phase will introduce zinc-bearing materials and residues processing alongside pilot-scale SHG zinc ingot production. The second phase will establish a full-scale SHG zinc ingot refinery and zinc oxide production plant, expanding the operation from initial material recovery into higher-value industrial processing. The facility’s output will support downstream industries including galvanising, alloy production, batteries and specialty chemicals, complementing SOHAR’s established metals cluster. The project also advances circular industrial practices by recovering zinc-bearing residues and converting them into commercially usable products, reducing the loss of recoverable industrial materials and creating additional economic value from industrial by-products. Eng. Dr. Raid Al Rubaiey, CEO of SOHAR Freezone and Deputy CEO of SOHAR Port, described the project as strengthening SOHAR’s integrated metals ecosystem through advanced manufacturing, downstream value creation and greater resource efficiency, highlighting the speed of p