At the forefront of Kuwait’s Vision 2035, a megaproject aims to turn the sparsely populated narrow northern end of the Gulf into an international trade hub. According to Dong Taikang, chairman of the Chinese Association in Kuwait, the $100 billion new metropolis called Silk City is set to become a vast free zone offering transhipment services to supply the nearby Iraqi and Iranian markets.

Already under construction on Bubiyan Island, Mubarak Al-Kabeer Port is reportedly the most expensive port development in the region at $9 billion.

In addition to serving as a logistical center, Silk City is expected to create at least 200,000 jobs and house up to 700,000 people. It will include entertainment facilities, workplaces, retail areas, an Olympic stadium, an international airport and a skyscraper called Mubarak Al-Kabir Tower.

According to Sara Akbar, a member of Kuwait's now-disbanded agency to implement Silk City, "What has been executed so far includes the first phase of Mubarak Al-Kabeer Port, part of a railroad network and the Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmed Al Sabah Causeway," a 36-kilometer (22-mile) bridge inaugurated in May 2019 to link the country’s capital to Subiya, where a 5,000-megawatt power plant has already been built. The Board of Trustees of Silk City and Boubyan Island was dissolved without a public explanation, government sources saying simply that a new board would be formed soon.