Oman is planning to invite international companies to bid in the second quarter of 2007 for a contract to develop a new 450MW power plant. This project is being implemented to meet demand in Oman’s southern port of Salalah. The plant is intended to provide 250MW of spare power capacity during summer in Salalah, which is home to the Sultanate’s largest container terminal. The facility, which will be open to foreign investors, will also be designed to process 15 million gallons a day of desalinated water. Arabian Gulf states, including the UAE and Saudi Arabia, need private investment to help fund a total of Usd 100 billion during the next decade to double their power-generating capacity.