Dubai: Investcorp has entered an agreement to invest in the $550 million expansion of the Port of Duqm in Oman, the Middle East's biggest alternative investment firm said on Monday, as it deepens investments in regional infrastructure assets.

The firm's infrastructure platform, Investcorp Aberdeen Infrastructure Partners (AIIP), will be a shareholder in the project, alongside a consortium formed by the Port of Duqm Company, the DEME Group and Port of Antwerp Bruges, Investcorp said in a statement.

Duqm port, located on Oman's southwest coast, lies close to its major oil and gas projects, and serves as a multipurpose hub, handling container shipments, dry and liquid bulks as well as cargo.

The expansion project envisages marine infrastructure works, dredging and the construction of a new quay wall that will service a new low-carbon industrial plan for green steel production.

Oman, a small non-OPEC producer, is following other Gulf countries in economic diversification efforts aimed at reducing dependence on oil revenues.

As part of the efforts, the country has been investing to support its decarbonisation targets, with the aim of producing at least 1 million metric tons of renewable hydrogen a year by 2030, according to a report published by the IEA in 2023.

Investcorp said on Monday that AIIP had secured the mandate to investing in the Port of Duqm project after a "competitive process".

The company, founded in 1982 in Bahrain, manages assets worth $55 billion. It is best known for listing luxury goods brands such as Gucci and Tiffany & Co, but it has branched out into private credit and assets including infrastructure.