2 days ago
Oman: NEDC strengthens future-readiness amid grid expansion challenges
MUSCAT: Nama Electricity Distribution Company (NEDC) has pledged to vigorously address any vulnerabilities - legal, digital, and operational—that could impact the company's future resilience and its alignment with Vision 2040 energy goals.
Potential challenges, cited in its 2024 Annual Report, include smart meter data inconsistencies, delayed SCADA integration in rural zones, and ongoing legal disputes tied to land access for substation projects—factors that could delay Oman's grid modernisation efforts and expose the company to compliance risks.
'Readings from smart meters were occasionally inconsistent due to discrepancies during the integration of legacy platforms post-merger,' the report notes.
While NEDC has deployed over 1 million smart meters—achieving 75% national coverage—the integration of disparate systems inherited from the 2023 utility consolidation has created data quality gaps. This raises concerns over billing accuracy, energy auditing, and real-time load management, particularly as the utility sector becomes increasingly digitised.
In parallel, the report reveals delays in achieving full operational control across NEDC's diverse service regions.
'Progress in integrating remote monitoring with regional control centres is ongoing, with delays in full real-time observability in rural zones,' the report says.
This limited grid visibility in certain governorates means parts of the network remain vulnerable to manual fault detection, delaying outage responses and reducing the effectiveness of smart infrastructure investments.
The report also discloses that 'legal proceedings related to disputes over right-of-way and land access have been initiated in two governorates'. These disputes have the potential to impact grid expansion timelines, especially for primary substations serving planned residential and industrial areas.
Despite these risks, NEDC maintained its core performance indicators, including RO 307 million in revenue and a 3.6% increase in customer accounts. The company has also invested RO 154 million in capital expansion, while achieving an Omanisation rate of 98.6%.
Yet the road ahead will require more than technical upgrades. Stronger regulatory alignment, proactive community engagement on land access, and cyber-governance reforms will be crucial to ensure NEDC not only grows—but does so sustainably.
