A Ministerial Committee was set up by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said establishing a new Port in Sohar in 1995 and to develop the Port of Salalah, formerly called Raysut. The Government of Oman and Port of Rotterdam signed a Memorandum of Understanding in July 2002 to draft a concession agreement for Sohar Port. The agreement was ratified by Oman Sultani Decree No. 80/2002 and it was issued in August 2002. In 2007, a concession agreement for the development of the 4,500-hectare acres Free Zone was signed and Sohar Free Zone was established in 2010. Oman Sultani Decree No. 123/2010 established the Sohar Free Zone. Under Oman Sultani Decree No. 105/2020, the Public Authority for Special Economic Zones and Free Zones (OPAZ) was established as the official regulator of the nation's special economic zones and free zones, including Sohar free zone.