Ministers to discuss stalled GCC rail project

• First proposed in 2009
• War has renewed focus
• UAE and Saudi signed MOU

GCC transport ministers are due to meet on November 8 to discuss advancing a regulatory framework for the region’s long-delayed rail network, as shipping disruption adds urgency to plans for better transit links between the six member states.

Bahraini transport minister Sheikh Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Khalifa announced the date at the Fujairah Energy Markets Forum, telling delegates he hoped to work with his Gulf counterparts to finalise the legislative arrangements for the project.

The six GCC members – Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UAE – first agreed in 2009 to build the network.

But the need for better alternative transport routes and railway connectivity has been thrown into focus since the US-Iran war began on February 28 and snarled shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

Saudi Arabia has turned to freight rail to bolster supply-chain security after shipping in the Red Sea – which had been the kingdom’s workaround for Hormuz – was disrupted by attacks from Iran-backed Houthi militants.

The UAE and Saudi Arabia on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding setting out what they described as general principles for the introduction of a joint rail network that can handle cargo, as well as plans for technical and economic studies.

“I firmly believe that finalising the regulatory framework and moving ahead with integrating [railway infrastructure] across all six GCC states and making railways to ports is very much essential,” Al Khalifa said.

Although individual Gulf states have made progress developing their own railway infrastructure, the wider regional network has faced repeated delays.

The GCC railway is intended to connect Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait through a 2,100km network.

• Gulf suppliers urged to halt Hormuz crossings
• UAE to test cross-border cargo drone
• Jordan-UAE Railway Company breaks ground on freight line

Hafeet Rail, a joint venture between Etihad Rail, Oman Rail and Mubadala Investment Company, will begin a trial run in the final quarter of 2027, Oman’s transport minister said in September.

The project is due to be completed by December 2030. The director general of the GCC Railway Cooperation Authority told local media in May that it was around 50 percent ready.

GCC leaders approved an agreement on the railway project at their summit in Bahrain last December, although further regulatory arrangements are needed before it can become fully operational.

Ministers later discussed ways to streamline customs and border procedures as well as strengthening logistics links between the railway and ports during a meeting in June.