Al Batinah North Governorate
Al Batinah North hosts Sohar Industrial City's 354 factories and $6.4B in 2024 foreign investment—Oman's logistics backbone with 925,000 residents and the sultanate's highest Omani national proportion.
Al Batinah North exists because the Gulf of Oman meets Oman's most fertile coastal plain—a 270-kilometer strip where the Hajar Mountains' seasonal wadis deposit alluvial soils rich enough to support the densest agricultural concentration in the sultanate. This geographic convergence of water, soil, and protected harbor made Sohar one of ancient Arabia's great trading ports, legendary as the birthplace of Sinbad the Sailor.
Sohar's revival as Oman's logistics backbone represents Vision 2040's diversification centerpiece. The Sohar Industrial City now hosts 354 factories, while A'Suwaiq Port handled 399.6 million tonnes of cargo in H1 2025—up from 374.2 million the previous year. Foreign investment reached $6.4 billion in 2024, with $1.7 billion recorded in H1 2025 alone. Non-oil economic activities grew 16% between 2022-2023, with service sector revenues reaching RO 2.4 billion and industrial output at RO 1.8 billion.
The governorate's 925,000 residents include the highest proportion of Omani nationals of any governorate—a demographic that signals stable labor availability to investors. Fish farming projects supported by the Ministry of Agriculture now supplement traditional fishing, adding food security infrastructure to the agricultural base that still produces dates, limes, and mangoes.
The Sohar Investment Forum attracted global investors in 2024, with preparations underway for a 2026 edition. Plans for twin industrial cities aim to extend the logistics corridor deeper into Oman's interior.
By 2026, Al Batinah North's trajectory depends on whether port throughput growth can maintain momentum while manufacturing diversifies beyond basic processing.