A huge new megacity in the Saudi Arabian desert set to cost over £1trillion has been issued a huge update.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud (MBS) has moved to reassure investors that his audacious plans to build a futuristic urban area called Neom are on schedule.
The outlandish proposal to build a 105 mile long, 660 foot plot of Saudi desert into a sprawling megacity was announced in 2017 with an expected cost of between $1-1.5 trillion dollars.
Neom is the latest in a long line of ambitious project launched by the kingdom since MBS assumed power and promises on its website to be “the land of the future where the greatest minds and best talents are empowered to embody pioneering ideas and exceed boundaries in a world inspired by imagination.”
But amidst doubts that progress on the project is faltering, the Crown Prince has launched an initiative called “Ground X” to prove that everything is still on track through photos and live webcams of progress on Neom.
Ground X reportedly has two million photos and live feeds of construction sites and project timelines for each of Neom’s zones. However, it’s not accessible by the general public, and is only available to investors and vendors.
The sprawling urban complex, built in a long, narrow line, will have no cars or vehicles and will place everything one could need within a five-minute walk in a climate controlled area.
The plans also include a 45,000 seat stadium which would host World Cup games should the country be successful in its bid to host the tournament.
Other plans include a ski resort in the mountainous region of Trojena which would allow winter sports for three months of the year, a super-luxury resort island and yacht club on the Red Sea with world-class shopping and cuisine as well as a 75 mile coastal wildlife reserve sprinkled with 12 luxury tourist destinations.
The city’s plans also include a proposed water network that will allow residents to get about in Candela P-12 electric hydrofoiling taxis, with the project recently ordering eight of the zero emission vehicles that went into production last year.
Gustav Hasselskog, CEO and founder of Candela said: “The P-12 is designed to create zero-emission water transport systems which have significant improvements over traditional water commuting.
“Unlike legacy systems with large, slow, and energy-inefficient conventional ferries, the Candela P-12 is a smaller and faster unit, allowing much more frequent departures and quicker journeys for passengers. All daily necessities and services will be just a short boat commute away.”
The purchase, which represents the biggest sale in Candela’s history estimates to deliver the vehicles to Saudi Arabia in early 2026 in what could be seen as a significant milestone for the fledgling project.