Healthcare Projects Lead Ongoing Constructions In Kuwait

Infrastructure developments, educational facilities, as well as new housing projects are propelling Kuwait’s construction industry, says a new report by Business News Construction (BNC) a leading constructions projects database in the region. However, it is constructions projects in the healthcare sector that top the list of projects that are underway or shortly to begin in Kuwait.

With six out of the top ten projects being in development of new or existing hospitals, the healthcare sector accounts for US$5.5 billion of the total $12 billion construction projects taking place in the country. Construction in the healthcare sector is showing an uptick throughout the region. According to the report, the overall size of the healthcare economy in the GCC, which was around $40.3 billion in 2015, is expected to increase at a projected rate of 12 percent per year, to reach$71.3 billion in 2020.

Dmg Events Middle East, Asia & Africa, the organizers of Kuwait’s largest construction event, The Big 5 Kuwait 2016, which commissioned the BNC report released the list of the country’s ongoing or upcoming healthcare projects as follows:

Jaber Ahmed Al Jaber Al Sabah Hospital - South Surra: With estimated completion in November 2016, the $1.6 billion project includes the construction of a hospital complex over an area of 47,000 square meters. It also features a dental building on an area of 5,000 square meters, a staff and doctor's residency building, and a 3-storey underground car park.

New Farwaniya Hospital Expansion - Al Farwaniya: Valued at $1 billion and due for completion by the end of 2019, the project involves the construction of a hospital complex, a dentistry building with 100 specialized clinics, 27 operation theaters and 233 ICU beds.

Children’s Hospital - Al Shuwaikh: The hospital will feature a total of 792 beds, 2,000 car parking spaces, a helipad and a free-standing day care center. Valued at $850 million, completion is expected in the last quarter of 2018.Kuwait Maternity Hospital - Sabah Medical Area: Although still at the tender stage, the $790 million hospital, due for completion in 2018, is expected to handle around 36,000 births annually.

New Al Sabah Hospital – Shuwaikh: The $635 million hospital currently under construction will cover an area of 88,000 square meters with a capacity of 671 beds and a multi-story parking area.

Cancer Treatment Hospital - Al Sabah Hospital Campus: Due for completion by the end of 2016, the $574 million hospital will cover  200,000 square meters with program elements like Radiology, Nuclear Medicine, Chemotherapy Units, Surgical Units, Intensive Care Units, Physical Therapy Facilities, an auditorium and a car park building.

Special Needs Education School Complex – Hawally: The project, valued $504 million, will develop a Special Needs School comprising 16 to 18 buildings with the capacity to accommodate 3,000 students over a 22,000 square meters gross building area.

According to industry analysts, the biggest opportunity presented by the Kuwait’s construction market is the government’s commitment to infrastructure development, followed by fast-tracking PPP projects under the Partnerships Technical Bureau (PTB) and an increasing diversity in PPP projects (i.e. schools, metro, power, rail, parks, energy and health. Private investments are expected to further boost the construction sector with mega real estate development projects thanks to the current commodity prices that keep construction costs low.

Meanwhile, the Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects (KAPP) announced that it signed an agreement with the World Bank to help prepare an updated Project Guidebook for the Authority consistent with the provisions of the Public Private Partnership (PPP) Law.

The agreement, which was signed last week at the Authority's Head Office by KAPP's General Manager Motlaq Al-Sanei and the World Bank's Country Manager Dr. Firas Raad, will provide guidance to all public sector entities and private investors on the mechanisms for restructuring and implementing PPP's projects in Kuwait based on the 2014 Law and will serve as a valuable reference document for all parties interested in implementing PPP projects in the country.

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