The construction of a futuristic city called Neom was announced back in 2017. According to the Arab publication Arabian Business, the region is set to welcome its first residents and tourists as early as 2024.
Neom by the Numbers
The estimated budget for the construction is $500 billion. The planned area of the city is 26,500 square kilometers, stretching 460 kilometers along the Red Sea coast in northern Saudi Arabia. Designers promise that Neom will be 33 times larger than New York City.
The Project and Its Implementation
Neom has become the crown jewel of Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud’s vision to revitalize the country’s economy, transform a remote region into a futuristic technological hub, and attract as much investment as possible to the area.
Currently, planning and construction work is only 1% complete: builders have begun to raise land and dig tunnels through the mountains. It is known that the city is planned to be built from two endpoints and lead toward the center.
Future Technologies
According to the chief designers’ vision, there will be no roads for cars or ground transportation in the city. All transportation will take place underground. Electricity will be supplied through solar panels, taking advantage of the abundant sunshine in the desert! Using cutting-edge technologies, including seawater desalination, the city will be provided with drinking water, while food will be grown on specialized marine farms.
Essential services in Neom will be managed by robots across nearly all sectors: they are expected to work in security, logistics, delivery, and even in caring for the elderly and disabled.
And About Sports…
Sports competitions are set to take place in the mountainous region of Trojena, located near Neom. In winter, temperatures here drop below 10°C, and the average annual temperature is recorded at 10 degrees lower than in other parts of the country. For competitions, plans are in place to create artificial snow, using only renewable energy sources.
It is expected that after the Asian Games, Trojena will function as a year-round outdoor ski resort.