$4.3 billion for electricity and water projects in Kuwait

Ibrahim Muhammad – The MEED Projects platform reported that construction has begun on the North Kabd wastewater treatment plant in Kuwait, following the foundation-laying ceremony held on October 26. The facility will be the largest in the country, with a capacity of up to 1 million cubic meters per day, and construction is expected to take approximately three and a half years.

MEED noted that, as of early August last year, water infrastructure projects accounted for the majority of the Kuwaiti government’s contracts in the electricity and water sectors awarded in 2026, valued at $4.3 billion, with the North Kabd wastewater treatment plant project leading the list. In July, the China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) confirmed it had signed a contract to build the plant. MEED had previously reported in January that the Chinese company had been selected as the main contractor for the project, pending the official signing of the contract. According to official government records at the time, the Central Tenders Board of the Ministry of Public Works approved direct contracting for an amount of 999.85 million Kuwaiti dinars (approximately $3.3 billion). The contract covers the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of the plant over a ten-year period.

The Ministry of Public Works had initially launched a tender for the expansion of the Kabd plant in 2022. In September 2025, MEED reported that a Chinese company was expected to sign the contract as part of a series of agreements between Kuwait and China covering infrastructure and energy. Plans for the North Kabd wastewater treatment plant were first announced in 2013, according to MEED Projects, a platform specializing in tracking regional projects. The initial plan included two wastewater treatment units with a combined total capacity of approximately 500,000 cubic meters per day, alongside the development of an existing plant.

Notably, the total value of projects awarded in Kuwait during the third quarter of this year reached $1.9 billion, compared to $4.4 billion in the third quarter of 2025, according to data from MEED Projects. The energy sector accounted for more than 58% of the awarded project value in this quarter, equivalent to $1.1 billion, while the gas sector accounted for 22.7% ($424 million). Meanwhile, the total value of awarded projects in the construction sector nearly doubled, reaching $250 million in the third quarter of 2026, compared to $127 million in the third quarter of 2025.