Riyadh – Saudi Arabia has unveiled plans to build a $500 billion metropolis in the desert. Powered entirely by green energy, the development is part of the kingdom’s efforts to diversity its economy away from oil.
The urban project was announced at the Future Investment
Initiative conference in Riyadh by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin
Salman, in what Bloomberg called “a rare public
appearance”.
“We try to work only with the dreamers,” the 32-year-old crown
prince told investors. “This place is not for conventional people
or companies.”
Called NEOM, the project will be backed by
more than $500 billion from the Saudi government, its wealth fund,
as well as local and international investors, according to a
statement. It will operate outside
the “existing governmental framework”, with investors consulted at
every step of the development.
The ambitious, future-oriented megacity will span Saudi
Arabia, Egypt and Jordan and cover 26,500 square kilometres,
including 468 kilometres of uninterrupted coastline. It will be
developed from the ground up on untouched land, allowing the
developers to “build a new way of life with excellent economic
prospects”.
Emphasis will be on future technologies and disruptive
solutions for transportation, food production, healthcare, internet
access, education and e-governance. Net-zero carbon houses will be
the standard, and the city layout will encourage walking and
bicycling. The entire city will be solely powered by renewable
energy, namely wind and sun.
According to World Architecture News, the project
has already caught the attention of prominent foreign investors,
including SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son and Blackstone CEO Stephen
Schwarzman.
The crown prince told investors that there is no set timeline
for the project, explaining that innovative ideas take
time.