Kuwait seals 50-year telco infrastructure partnership

Major project expected to see around $2.7b in minimum investment.

Kuwait is set to undertake a "comprehensive re-engineering" of its national telecommunications network as part of a five-decade infrastructure project.

"The project is considered one of the largest digital infrastructure initiatives in the State of Kuwait, with expected investments exceeding KWD825m ($2.7b) over the 50-year partnership term," said telco investor Beyon, which recently signed a commitment agreement with the Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects (KAPP) and the Ministry of Communications.    

"The project aims to develop, design, finance, build, operate, and maintain Kuwait's fixed telecommunications network through a modern operating model based on the establishment of a specialised company to manage and operate wholesale infrastructure in line with international standards."

Under the public-private partnership, Kuwait's legacy copper network will be decommissioned, the last-mile access network and next-generation network systems will be developed, and transport and backhaul networks will be modernised.

Beyon, which was named as the winning investor in February, added: "The project also includes a commitment by the project company to provide high-speed fibre connectivity to 90% of plots within the first five years... supported by technical capabilities enabling symmetrical speeds of up to 10Gbps.

"This will enhance Kuwait's ability to support cloud services, artificial intelligence technologies, smart cities, and advanced digital government services."

The fixed telecommunications network development project will be financed by the project company, which will be owned by KAPP (60%) and Beyon (40%) initially. Once fully operational, the project company will issue a public offering of 50% of its shares, allowing Kuwaitis to own part of it.

The county's digital transformation is part of Kuwait Vision 2035.