Muscat: Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tarik has ratified an agreement between Sultanate and the UAE to develop a railway connection between the two countries, clearing another formal step for the $2.5 billion Hafeet Rail project as construction progresses on the cross-border network.
The agreement was ratified under Royal Decree No. 75/2026, one of 10 Royal Decrees issued by Sultan Haitham on Thursday. The bilateral agreement itself was signed on June 21, 2026, and the decree took effect on September 3.
At the centre of the project is Hafeet Rail, a joint venture between Etihad Rail, Oman Rail and Mubadala Investment Company. The planned 238-kilometre railway will connect Sohar in Oman with the UAE national rail network, passing through Al Buraimi and Al Ain, according to The Arabian Stories paper.
The project is intended to do more than create a new passenger route. It would establish a direct rail corridor between Sohar, a major Omani industrial and maritime centre, and the UAE's expanding railway and logistics network, giving businesses another way to move raw materials and finished goods between ports, industrial areas and markets.
The network is valued at about $2.5 billion and has secured $1.5 billion in project financing from a group of regional and international banks.
Passenger trains are designed to travel at speeds of up to 200 kilometres per hour, carrying between 350 and 400 passengers.
Once operational, the journey between Sohar and Abu Dhabi is expected to take about 100 minutes, while the trip between Sohar and Al Ain could take about 47 minutes.
Freight trains will travel at speeds of up to 120km/h, with each train capable of carrying more than 15,000 tonnes of cargo, or roughly 270 standard containers. The network is expected to serve industries including mining, steel, petrochemicals, agriculture, food, retail and e-commerce.
Hafeet Rail said in April that construction had reached 40 per cent, with work advancing in Al Ain, Al Buraimi, Sohar and Wadi Al Jizzi.
The route crosses urban and industrial districts as well as mountainous terrain and deep wadis, requiring substantial excavation, bridges, tunnels and flood-protection infrastructure. More than 27 million cubic metres of earthworks had been completed when the company announced the milestone.
The network will include about 2.5 kilometres of tunnels, along with dozens of bridges and other major structures.
Hafeet Rail describes the project as the first railway network of its kind to connect two Gulf states, and the first GCC link in a broader transport and logistics chain envisioned for the region.
The project moved firmly into its implementation phase during Sultan Haitham's state visit to the UAE in April 2024, when shareholder agreements were signed, major construction contracts were awarded and the joint company adopted the Hafeet Rail name.
The name refers to Jebel Hafeet, the mountain near the Oman-UAE border and the corridor through which the railway passes.
Thursday's railway decree was the ninth of 10 issued by Sultan Haitham. The others covered a new law on narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, amendments to personal data and mineral wealth legislation, diplomatic transfers and appointments, and public-benefit status for a rainwater drainage project near Al Baraka Palace.
