Kuwait needs over $56bln for housing, development projects – report

Kuwait needs over $56bln for housing, development projects – report

OPEC producer Kuwait needs to hike spending to more than 17 billion Kuwaiti dinars ($56 billion) on housing and development projects during the 2022-2026 development plan to attain government targets, according to a local bank report.

The Gulf county, which controls the world’s sixth largest recoverable oil deposits, is expected to take advantage of high oil prices to boost capital spending during that plan, the National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) said in a study published in Alqabas and other Kuwaiti newspapers on Friday.

“Despite plans for spending increases during that plan, some projects, mainly housing and development projects, are costly and require expenditure of more than 17 billion to be fully completed and to achieve targets,” the report said.

“These targets could be difficult to be attained during this specific period without a larger increase in spending,” it added.

NBK said Kuwait expects a modest increase in spending in its 2022-2023 budget, adding that an average oil price of $80/barrel is needed to avert a deficit.

(Writing by Nadim Kawach; Editing by Anoop Menon)

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