Oman Sets First EV Charging Fees: 50-120 Baisa via Shahin App

Oman has put a price tag on its electric vehicle future. From October 1, 2026, every public charging station in the Sultanate will apply one of three government-approved tariffs, and every operator will be required to feed real-time data into "Shahin," the country's unified national EV charging platform.

🔑 Key Takeaways

• Oman's first official EV charging tariff takes effect October 1, 2026, ranging from 50 to 120 baisa per kilowatt-hour depending on charger capacity.
• The fees were jointly approved by the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology (MTCIT), the Authority for Public Services Regulation, and the Oman Net Zero Centre.
• All charging operators must connect to the national "Shahin" digital platform and update location, availability, and pricing data in real time.
• The move follows Shahin's public launch earlier this month and marks the shift from a pilot digital service to a regulated national utility.
• Officials say the pricing structure was designed to keep charging affordable for drivers while remaining commercially viable for station operators and investors.

⚡ What Changed This Week

According to Times of Oman, MTCIT confirmed on September 7 that charging fees will be tiered by the power output of the charging equipment, not a flat national rate. Chargers rated at 90 kilowatts or below will cost 50 baisa per kilowatt-hour, chargers between 91 and 180 kilowatts will cost 90 baisa, and the fastest chargers, 181 kilowatts and above, will cost 120 baisa per kilowatt-hour.

As Al Roya reported, the three authorities said the tariff came out of "an integrated study of the economic and operational aspects" of charging stations, aimed at striking a balance between an affordable price for drivers and a commercially sustainable model for the companies building the infrastructure. Public feedback and stakeholder consultations fed into the final structure before it was signed off.

Muscat Daily described the announcement as marking "a new phase in the development of Oman's electric mobility infrastructure," noting that the fees apply nationwide regardless of which company operates the station.

📱 Why the Shahin App Matters

The pricing decision is inseparable from Shahin, the national digital platform MTCIT has been building to unify Oman's fragmented EV charging landscape. The app lets drivers find charging points, check real-time availability, see connector types and charging capacity, view operating hours, and now, confirm the officially approved fee before they plug in.

Crucially, the regulation does not just set prices; it obliges every charging operator, current and future, to connect their stations to Shahin and keep operational data current. That requirement turns what was a consumer convenience app into a live regulatory backbone: the government can now monitor pricing compliance and network coverage across every operator from a single national dataset.

Shell Oman Marketing and First Electric Vehicle Company are currently listed as active operators on the platform, with additional companies reportedly in planning or feasibility stages, according to Times of Oman's reporting.

This is a concrete follow-on to Shahin's public rollout earlier in September, and it lands in the same week MTCIT also launched Wassel, its new digital platform for regulating delivery bikes, another example of the ministry pairing a citizen-facing app with a binding regulatory framework rather than leaving the technology to operate informally.

💰 Is It Actually Cheaper Than Petrol?

Officials addressed the affordability question directly. Times of Oman cited the joint statement noting that "the fees for charging electric vehicles at service stations remain lower in comparison to the cost of using gasoline-powered vehicles," a point regulators are keen to stress as Oman tries to accelerate EV adoption alongside its net-zero targets.

🇴🇲 Why This Matters for Oman

Regulated, transparent pricing removes one of the biggest barriers to EV adoption: uncertainty. Drivers who were unsure what a public charge would cost, or which operator's app to trust, now have a single national reference point and a single national app. For investors and station operators, a government-approved tariff band, set after an economic feasibility study, gives the revenue certainty needed to justify building out more charging infrastructure across the Sultanate's highways and cities.

It also shows how Oman's digital government machinery increasingly pairs a citizen-facing platform with a regulatory mandate baked in from day one, rather than digitizing services after the fact. That approach echoes the broader digital transformation drive tracked in Oman's push to digitize thousands of government services under Vision 2040, where the goal has consistently been measurable, usable systems rather than announcements alone. With three months left before the tariff takes effect, the real test will be whether operators outside Muscat connect to Shahin at the pace the ministry expects.