Saudi Arabiathe main exporter of crude oil in the world, announced this Sunday the launch of a eco-city “with zero cars, zero streets and zero carbon emissions” in its futuristic mega-development NEOM.
The NEOM project of 500,000 million dollars, which will be built from the ground up along the kingdom’s picturesque Red Sea coastis billed as an evocative development of a sci-fi blockbuster.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman revealed plans for a city, dubbed “THE LINE”in a presentation broadcast on state television.
“We need to transform the concept”
“Why should we sacrifice nature for the sake of development?” said Prince Mohammed bin Salman. “Need transform the concept of a city conventional in that of a futuristic city.”
The prince later told reporters in the northwestern city of Al Ula that the project was the conclusion of three years of preparation, adding that its infrastructure would cost between 100,000 and 200,000 million dollars.
“The backbone of the investment in ‘The Line’ will come from the $500 billion in support of NEOM by the Saudi government, the FIP and local and global investors over 10 years,” he added.
It consists of “a city of one million inhabitants with a length of 170 kilometers that preserves 95 percent of nature within the NEOM, with zero cars, zero streets and zero carbon emissions,” he said.
“We need to transform the concept of a conventional city into that of a futuristic cityadded the de facto leader of the Arab world’s largest economy, regularly ranked among the world’s most polluting countries.
the city of the future
The pedestrian city It will have services such as schools, health centers and green spaces, as well as high-speed public transport, and the trip is not expected to last more than 20 minutes, according to a statement from NEOM.
Artificial Intelligence will play a key role in the city, according to the statement, adding that “It will be powered by 100 percent clean energyproviding residents with pollution-free, healthier and more sustainable environments.”
Construction of the city will begin in the first quarter of this year, with financing from the Public Investment Fund, the main vehicle through which the kingdom is diversifying its economy beyond oil.
The project is expected to create 380,000 jobs and contribute $48 billion to the kingdom’s GDP by 2030, according to the statement from the NOS.