Oman's Sultan Haitham names new energy minister in Cabinet reshuffle

Oman's Sultan Haitham on Thursday ordered a Cabinet reshuffle in a royal decree.

One of the notable changes was the appointment of Salem Al Oufi as Minister of Energy and Minerals.

Dr Mohammed Al Maamari has been appointed as Minister of Endowments and Religious Affairs while Dr Hilal Al Sabti was named Minister of Health, the country's state television channel reported.

Sultan Haitham also issued a decree establishing a higher justice council.

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Mr Al Oufi, the new Energy Minister, had served as undersecretary of the Ministry of Energy and Minerals since August, 2020.

He is also vice chairman of the board of directors of Oman's Public Authority for Water (Diam), and a member of the board of Petroleum Development Oman, the major oil and gas exploration and production company in the Sultanate.

Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tariq presides over a Cabinet meeting. Oman News Agency

The sultan also appointed Ghosn bin Hilal Al Alawi as the new head of the State Audit Institution responsible for protecting public funds, safeguarding state properties and preventing conflict.

The royal decree also defined the functions of the Ministry of Interior and approved its organisational structure.

Oman said earlier this year it is projecting a deficit of 2.24 billion Omani rials ($5.82bn) in the fiscal year, which is equivalent to 8 per cent of its gross domestic product.

Government revenue for the year is projected to decrease by 19 per cent year-on-year, to 8.64bn rials, while spending is estimated to dip to 10.88bn rials, an annual drop of 14 per cent, the budget shows.

Coming soon

Torno Subito by Massimo Bottura

When the W Dubai – The Palm hotel opens at the end of this year, one of the highlights will be Massimo Bottura’s new restaurant, Torno Subito, which promises “to take guests on a journey back to 1960s Italy”. It is the three Michelinstarred chef’s first venture in Dubai and should be every bit as ambitious as you would expect from the man whose restaurant in Italy, Osteria Francescana, was crowned number one in this year’s list of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants.

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Another exciting opening at the W Dubai – The Palm hotel is South Korean chef Akira Back’s new restaurant, which will continue to showcase some of the finest Asian food in the world. Back, whose Seoul restaurant, Dosa, won a Michelin star last year, describes his menu as, “an innovative Japanese cuisine prepared with a Korean accent”.

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal

The highly experimental chef, whose dishes are as much about spectacle as taste, opens his first restaurant in Dubai next year. Housed at The Royal Atlantis Resort & Residences, Dinner by Heston Blumenthal will feature contemporary twists on recipes that date back to the 1300s, including goats’ milk cheesecake. Always remember with a Blumenthal dish: nothing is quite as it seems.

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More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
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