Oman: New $370 million data hosting and cryptocurrency mining facility in Salalah, Oman

A new data hosting and cryptocurrency mining facility has been built in Oman for $370 million. Established in Salalah on August 13 by the Omani Ministry of Transport, Communications, and Information Technology (MTCIT), the center is part of the country's national infrastructure program. The data center and cryptocurrency mine were created by Exahertz International, a division of Afaaq for Advanced Technologies. More than 2,000 mining machines can be powered by the facility's first phase, which has around 11MW capacity across 3.36m sq ft. By October, this is anticipated to reach 15,000 machines.

Bitmain Technologies' water-cooled cryptocurrency mining systems are being used at this facility. The first such facility in the country opened in November of 2022, making this the second to open. There will be hundreds of new jobs created as a result of these two facilities, which are valued at a total of $740.4 million. Those centers, as Minister Eng Al Maawali put it, "help to accelerate the growth of our digital economy and create new opportunities for Omanis."

Oman plans to build a number of these crypto-mining data centers, with three in Salalah and one in Al Jabal Al Akhdar. Exahertz plans to staff future projects with locals and recruit young people through internship opportunities.