Kuwait Towers

The Kuwait Towers are three thin towers in Kuwait City, standing on a point of land that sticks out into the Persian Gulf. They were officially opened in March 1979 and are seen as a symbol of modern Kuwait. The tallest one is 187 metres high and carries two spheres, while the second tower is 147 metres and the third is a small needle for equipment.

They were the sixth and last group in Kuwait's larger system of 34 water towers, and they look very different from the other five. Their spheres are covered with about 41,000 enamelled steel discs in eight shades of blue, green and grey. The towers are a mix of a practical water-storage project and a showpiece: the main tower holds water, restaurants and a viewing sphere that turns once every 30 minutes.

How they were designed

The towers were designed by the Danish architect Malene Bjørn as part of a water distribution project run by the Swedish engineering company VBB. Her husband and the company's chief architect, Sune Lindström, had already built five groups of 'mushroom' water towers, but the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmed, wanted something more beautiful for the sixth site. Out of ten designs, three were shown to him, and he chose the one that was built. The architect said the design stands for humanity and technology, shown by a globe and a rocket.

How they were built

Construction ran from 1971 to 1976, and the main tower opened to the public on 1 March 1979. A company from Belgrade, Yugoslavia, built the towers from reinforced and prestressed concrete. The spiral pattern of the blue, green and grey discs reminds people of the tiled domes of old mosques. The towers were heavily damaged during the Iraqi occupation of Kuwait in 1990 and 1991. They were closed for maintenance from March 2012 and reopened on 8 March 2016 with a huge fireworks festival.

What is inside

The lower sphere of the main tower holds a water tank of 4,500 cubic metres in its bottom half. Its upper half has a restaurant for 90 people, a cafe, a lounge and a reception hall. The upper sphere is 123 metres above sea level, turns all the way round every 30 minutes and holds a cafe. The second tower is a water tower, and the two water towers store 9,000 cubic metres of water together. The third tower holds equipment that lights up the two larger towers at night.

On the globe

The model shows the three slim towers with their round spheres on the Kuwait City waterfront. Look for the blue patterned spheres.