Oman and Iran will enter into an agreement within the next few months to establish a new shipping route and customs agreement between the two countries.

Oman will be a strategic location from which Iranian goods can be distributed to Asian countries and to Yemen and central and east Africa, according to Ali Akbar Sibeveh, the Iranian ambassador to Oman.

Duqm port is expected to play a part in this, and could become the number one port in the Gulf, thanks to its new rail connections, the ambassador said.

In the meantime, Oman and Iran are working on a visa waiver scheme that it is hoped will help facilitate bilateral trade between the two countries.

The countries have been working on the plans for the past two years and expect to reach an agreement soon, Sibeveh said.

A new gas pipeline was agreed between Iran and Oman last year. Technical committees have completed preliminary work and development will begin soon, Sibeveh said. The US$1bn pipeline will supply Oman with about 10bn cubic metres of gas annually.

Bilateral trade between Oman and Iran has increased to US$1bn over the past two years.

Iran has invested around US$4bn in developments in Sohar and Duqm, which includes a new hospital and a new smelter.