Kuwait Law No. 28/1980 Promulgating the Kuwaiti Commercial Maritime Law has provided for two ways of owning a ship: by building a ship and the purchase of a ship. International contracts for building of ships is subject to private agreements, e.g., ships building standard forms and the essential elements are governed by the national laws. Contracts to construct a new ship are non-maritime in nature because they are insufficiently related to any rights and duties relating to navigation or sea trade. Much of the provisions of the shipbuilding contract is assimilated from a sale contract and thus some provisions of the shipbuilding contract comply with the commercial-transaction-law, e.g., related to monetary compensation from the defaulting party.

This Practice Note explores the provisions related to ship building and the common practice of shipbuilding. Kuwait Law No. 28/1980 did not cover in detail the contractual provisions for the building of ships. Thus, much of the details in this Practice Notes are dedicated to providing insight on the market's common practice of shipbuilding.

• EEDI: Energy Efficiency Design Index. It is a requirement under Annex VI of MARPOL Convention.