Country Intelligence Hub
Kuwait
Kuwait's infrastructure market is anchored by an active KAPP-administered PPP/IWPP program, currently running concurrent power-water and utility-scale solar procurements at Az-Zour North, Al-Khairan and Al-Dibdibah/Al-Shagaya, alongside a fully state-owned downstream oil sector centered on the recently-expanded Al-Zour Refinery. Kuwait's own landmark wastewater PPP at Umm Al Hayman is now transitioning toward partial privatization via a planned stake sale. Major transport infrastructure — a new international airport terminal and the Boubyan Island deep-water port — remain under construction, while Kuwait's domestic urban rail ambitions were cancelled on fiscal grounds, leaving the cross-border GCC Railway as the country's only live rail initiative. Investment and project delivery operate within a dedicated 2014 PPP law and a 2016 public-procurement framework recently strengthened with local-content requirements, supported by Kuwait's broader corporate, tax, banking and dispute-resolution regimes.
Latest Developments
- Regulatory · 27 September 2026Kuwait Cabinet approves and gazettes Decree-Law 94/2026 amending the Public Tenders Law
Decree-Law No. 94 of 2026, published in the official gazette Kuwait Alyoum on 27 September 2026, amends Law No. 49 of 2016 on public tenders — raising procurement thresholds, prohibiting local agents, introducing SME bid preference and local-content requirements, and establishing a Cabinet-level grievance committee. The amendment itself comes into force approximately three months after publication.
- Regulatory · 5 July 2026Kuwait issues Decree-Law 69/2026 restructuring Bankruptcy Court composition
Decree-Law No. 69 of 2026, signed 28 June 2026 and published in the Official Gazette Kuwait Al-Youm (Issue 1798) on 5 July 2026, amends Articles 4 and 7(1) of the Bankruptcy Law (Law No. 71 of 2020), restructuring the composition of Bankruptcy Court circuits to speed dispute resolution.
- Market · 1 July 2026Kuwait completes KIPIC-into-KNPC merger
Kuwait's Oil Minister Tareq Al-Roumi announced on 1 July 2026 the completion of the merger dissolving Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries Company (KIPIC) and fully merging it into Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC), following Supreme Petroleum Council approval on 29 April 2026. KIPIC's legal personality was fully terminated; KNPC legally succeeded all of its assets, rights, obligations and liabilities.
Infrastructure
- GCC Railway — Kuwait SegmentProject · Rail Infrastructure, Cross-Border Infrastructure · Development / Planning
- Umm Al Hayman Wastewater Treatment PlantProject · Wastewater Infrastructure · Operational
- Al-Dibdibah Power and Al-Shagaya Renewable Energy Phase III Zone 2 Solar PV IPPProject · Solar Energy · Procurement
- Al-Dibdibah Power and Al-Shagaya Renewable Energy Phase III Zone 1 Solar PV IPPProject · Solar Energy · Procurement
Infrastructure Sectors
- Energy Infrastructure
- Desalination
- Solar Energy
- Airport Infrastructure
Key Organizations
Legal & Regulatory Framework
A compact map of the legal topics InfraLex tracks for Kuwait. Each card links to the full instrument list for that topic.
Foreign Investment
Primary frameworkDirect Investment Promotion Law
1 instrument
Companies & Corporate
Primary frameworkCompanies Law
1 instrument
Competition
Primary frameworkCompetition Protection Law
1 instrument
PPP / Concessions
Primary frameworkPublic-Private Partnerships Law
1 instrument
Public Procurement
Primary frameworkPublic Procurement Law
1 instrument
Land / Real Estate / Land Use
Primary frameworkReal Estate Ownership Law
1 instrument
Environmental / Permitting
Primary frameworkEnvironmental Protection Law
1 instrument
Tax
Multiple frameworks
2 instruments
Banking & Finance
Multiple frameworks
2 instruments
Security / Collateral
Primary frameworkCivil Code
1 instrument
Arbitration & Dispute Resolution
Primary frameworkJudicial Arbitration Law
1 instrument
Insolvency / Bankruptcy
Primary frameworkBankruptcy Law
1 instrument