Gulf states sign legal framework for regional railway network

Overview

Updated 1 hour ago

Gulf Cooperation Council transport ministers signed the general agreement for a 2,117-kilometre railway in Manama on November 8. The line is meant to run from Kuwait through Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to Oman.

The agreement is the legal scaffolding, not the track. It sets who builds and pays for what, how the six national networks connect, and a target of full operation by December 2030. Each country finances the segment inside its own borders; shared cross-border components are costed jointly.

Why it matters

Freight could eventually move from Kuwait to Muscat by rail, giving Gulf ports a route that avoids the Strait of Hormuz.

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Key Indicators

2,117 km

Length of planned network

Kuwait to Oman, through Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE.

$16B

Estimated core infrastructure cost

A range of $15.4–16 billion reported by Al Jazeera; the GCC says cost estimates are being revised.

55.9%

Reported overall project completion

Average progress across member states, according to GCC Secretary-General Jasem AlBudaiwi; Bahrain's minister says it is not a share of total construction.

Projected annual passengers by 2030

GCC target, rising to more than 8 million by 2045.

200M tonnes

Projected annual freight by 2030

GCC target, rising to 271 million tonnes by 2045.

Voices

Curated perspectives — historical figures and your fellow readers.

People Involved

Sheikh Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Khalifa

Bahrain's Minister of Transportation and Telecommunications

Signed the railway agreement on behalf of Bahrain

Jasem Mohamed AlBudaiwi

Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council

Attended the signing; announced the December 2030 target

Organizations Involved

Gulf Cooperation Council

Regional organization

Owns the railway project; its transport ministers signed the agreement

The six-state bloc whose transport ministers signed the railway agreement in Manama.

GCC Railways Authority

Regional rail coordinating body

Coordinating execution and technical compatibility across six national networks

Created in 2021 to coordinate construction and standardize technical and safety rules across the six national networks.

Bahrain Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunications

National transport ministry

Signed the agreement; Bahrain's rail link depends on a planned causeway to Saudi Arabia

Bahrain's transport ministry, which signed the agreement and briefed on how the project will be financed.

Timeline

December 2009 November 2026

5 events Latest: Today

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November 2026
Transport ministers sign the general agreement
Today Agreement

Six GCC states sign the legal and regulatory framework for the railway in Manama.
Today
GCC puts overall completion at 55.9%
Today Statement

AlBudaiwi says the network is 55.9% complete, with full operation set for December 2030.
Today
February 2026
Iran war disrupts Gulf shipping
Conflict

Strikes on Iran trigger attacks on Gulf states and a de facto blockade of Hormuz.
February 2026
December 2021
GCC Railways Authority created
Institution

The Supreme Council decides to set up a body to coordinate construction and compatibility.
December 2021
December 2009
GCC approves a six-state railway
Policy

The GCC Supreme Council backs a network linking all six member states.
December 2009

Scenarios

Full network opens on the December 2030 target

Possible Resolves by Q2 2031

Discussed by: GCC Secretary-General Jasem AlBudaiwi and Bahrain's transport minister, both of whom named December 2030 as the operating date

Every member state finishes its own segment and the cross-border links are commissioned, giving a continuous line from Kuwait to Oman. The Bahraini minister has said interconnection lines between neighboring countries can open as soon as their components are done, so the network could fill in piece by piece rather than all at once. The risk sits in the shared components, especially the Bahrain–Saudi crossing.

Bahrain joins late as the King Hamad Causeway slips

Possible Resolves by End of 2030

Discussed by: Bahrain's Minister of Transportation and Telecommunications, who tied the December 2030 target to the new causeway

The other five states connect by land. Bahrain is an island, and its only rail route into the network is the proposed King Hamad Causeway to Saudi Arabia, which also carries road traffic. The minister said studies and the privatization of the existing King Fahd Causeway Authority are still in progress. If the new crossing is not built, Bahrain's station sits outside the operating network.

UAE–Oman line runs first, ahead of the full network

Likely Resolves by Q2 2028

Discussed by: The National, citing the 238km Hafeet Rail project and its planned 2027 trial operations

Hafeet Rail links Sohar port in Oman to Abu Dhabi through Al Buraimi and Al Ain, using the UAE's existing national network. It is the most advanced cross-border piece and does not depend on the causeway or on the eastern Saudi links. Trial operations are expected in 2027, which would make it the first segment of the Gulf system to carry traffic.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

1986-1994

Channel Tunnel (1986–1994)

Britain and France signed the Treaty of Canterbury in 1986, authorizing a privately financed rail tunnel under the English Channel. Boring began in 1988 and the link opened in 1994, connecting two national rail systems that used different operating rules and safety regimes.

Then

Construction ran years late and costs came in far above the original estimate, forcing a financial restructuring.

Now

It became the reference model for cross-border rail: a bilateral treaty, national financing shares, and a jointly owned operator.

Why this matters now

The GCC agreement copies that structure, including the choice to let each state fund its own territory. The Bahrain–Saudi causeway is the Gulf's version of the same fixed-link problem.

1862-1869

US First Transcontinental Railroad (1862–1869)

The Pacific Railroad Acts set federal land grants and loan guarantees behind two private companies, the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific, building toward a meeting point in Utah. They joined 1,912 miles of track at Promontory Summit in 1869.

Then

The line cut a months-long overland journey to about a week and moved freight that had gone by sea around South America.

Now

It set the pattern for state-backed rail construction and showed how freight economics, not passenger demand, decide whether a long line pays.

Why this matters now

Gulf planners are making the same bet: the project's case rests on 200 million tonnes of freight a year by 2030, with passenger service as a secondary revenue line.