Oman's biggest sovereign wealth fund, the State General Reserve Fund (SGRF), plans to cooperate with other state and private investors to establish a venture to buy into the mining industry, officials said on Tuesday. The venture, Mining Development Oman (MDO), will have OMR100 million (USD260 million) of capital and establish vehicles for its investments in various locations, the SGRF's executive president Abdulsalam Al Murshidi told Reuters. Three other state bodies, the Oman Investment Fund, Oman Oil Co, and Oman National Investments Development Co, will combine with the SGRF to take a total 60 percent stake in MDO. "Forty percent of the company will be offered to the public. The IPO (initial public offer) is expected by the end of quarter two," Murshidi said. He said MDO would be a partial investor in mining projects, seeking partners locally, regionally, and internationally, but did not elaborate on where the projects would be located or give other details. (Reuters)