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The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office highlighted the project as part of announcements aimed at driving growth and jobs in both countries. The facility, dubbed Salalah Al Khadra Digital, will focus on hyperscale data centre infrastructure to support AI applications and cloud services. It will also create over 100 highly skilled positions in the UK by leveraging British technical expertise while delivering returns for UK-backed investors, the announcement stated.
Oman Observer reported on October 24 that the project is valued at approximately $1.3 billion and represents a significant boost to the Sultanate’s strategy to position itself as a regional hub for artificial intelligence and advanced digital infrastructure. The initiative expands on Yamna’s prior commitments in Oman, including a green hydrogen development in the Dhofar Governorate where Salalah is located. Officials from Yamna and the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology signed the deal in London last week.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham stated that he was delighted to welcome the Sultan, noting the longstanding friendship between the UK and Oman that generates real benefits for people in both nations. The data centre agreement is accompanied by a new arrangement to accelerate two-way investment, building upon the UK-Oman Sovereign Investment Partnership established in 2022. Under that partnership Oman has invested £1.7 billion in the UK according to British government figures.
UK Export Finance will increase its capacity to support British exports to Oman to as much as £7 billion as part of the strengthened ties. The expanded financing is expected to open further opportunities in sectors ranging from renewable energy and technology to healthcare and critical minerals. The announcements coincided with the first state visit to the UK by an Omani Sultan since 1982.
Yamna said in a statement that the agreement constitutes an important step in advancing the Salalah Al Khadra Digital project by uniting British investment and know-how with Oman’s vision for a world-class digital economy. No specific details have yet been released on the project’s power capacity in megawatts or a construction timetable. The development adds to Oman’s wider efforts to attract investment in the computing infrastructure needed to support enterprise AI and next-generation digital applications according to the Oman Observer.
