World's Biggest Construction Site Shows Signs of Trouble
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
Authorities working on the largest construction site in the world have begun to review the scope and feasibility of the "gigaproject."
Aiman al-Mudaifer, who took over as Neom's CEO after the resignation of Nadhmi al-Nasr last year, launched a "comprehensive review" into Neom's scope this week, according to a report in the Financial Times.
Newsweek has contacted Neom for more information via email. Newsweek has been unable to independently verify the report.
The Context
Neom is the flagship element of Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia's strategy to diversify its economy away from oil dependence. The Line, the most ambitious piece of Neom, was unveiled as a pair of parallel 500-meter-tall skyscrapers stretching through the desert, with infrastructure, residences and public places all sandwiched within a 200-meter width.
While Saudi officials continue to promote the Line as a revolutionary project, its progress and scale have drawn scrutiny, especially over allegations of migrant worker abuse on the construction site.
What To Know
The main elements of the project are being "reviewed in terms of their scope," a person familiar with the matter told the Financial Times.
The review "is taking place in an environment of limited resources," the person continued. "Some things were done that need to be looked at again."
"There's huge pressure on Neom to deliver because it's seen as totemic—it's inextricably linked to Vision 2030," as second person said, adding, "It's an unprecedented project, not just for Saudi Arabia."
Since its announcement, Neom—and more specifically the Line—has come under criticism for an unrealistic scope and ambitious timeline.
A rendering of the Line, the flagship project at Neom, the world's largest construction site.
A rendering of the Line, the flagship project at Neom, the world's largest construction site.
NEOM
The "linear city" was originally pitched as a home to more than 1 million people, completed within a decade in time for Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 project, which has a budget of $700 billion.
Despite $500 billion of that going toward the Line, the project has been beset with difficulties and has been scaled back to house fewer than 300,000 people, though Saudi Arabia has not acknowledged reports of the change.
Progress on the Line shows that foundation work for the structure is underway, along with electricity infrastructure in the form of large wind farms in the desert. About 2,800 staff already live and work at Neom in custom-made residences.
What People Are Saying
Giles Pendleton, the Line's chief operating officer, said in a post promoting its progress on LinkedIn: "A good snap shot of progress and a range of NEOM infrastructure projects from the water pipeline to new camps completing to massive amount of work in Oxagon harbor. ... All are going well and shows things from a very different view point from the air."
What Happens Next
The greater part of Neom, like the rest of the Vision project, is meant to be completed in time for 2030. It remains to be seen whether the results of the review will affect the project's deadline.
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