Neom is arguably the world's largest and most controversial
architecture project. Here, we explain the key details of the
development inSaudi
Arabia, which includes The
Line megacity.
What is Neom?
An initiative of crown prince Mohammed bin Salman – Saudi Arabia's de
facto ruler – Neom is
a large area of the country that has been earmarked for development.
Although often called a smart
city, Neom is more accurately described as a region that will
contain numerous cities, resorts and other developments.
The project is being largely bankrolled by the Public Investment Fund,
which invests funds on behalf of the government of Saudi Arabia. The
Saudi development company established to create Neom, which is led by
chief executive officer Nadhmi Al-Nasr, claims the fund is
contributing $500 billion to the scheme.
It forms part of the Saudi Vision 2030 plan to diversify the country's
economy in order to reduce its dependence on oil.
Where is Neom?
Neom encompasses an area of around 10,200 square miles (26,500 square
kilometres) in northwestern Saudi Arabia. This is around the size of
Albania.
The area is bounded by the Red Sea to the south and the Gulf of Aqaba
to the west.
What will be in Neom?
According to the developer, Neom will consist of 10 projects that they
refer to as regions. So far, details of four of the regions have been
announced. These are The Line, which is the most well-known, as well
as Oxagon, Trojena and Sindalah.
The Line is planned to be a 170-kilometre linear city that will
house nine million people. It will run from east to west across the
Neom region. According to the developer, the city will consist of two
parallel, 500-metre-high, linear skyscrapers standing 200 metres
apart. The buildings will be clad with mirrored facades.
Oxagon is planned as an octagon-shaped port city that will be
built on the Red Sea at the far south of the Neom region. According to
Neom's developer, the port and logistics hub will be the "world's
largest floating structure".
The Line (top) and Trojena ski resort (above) or two of four regions
that have been unveiled
Trojena is planned as ski resort in the Sarwat Mountains near the
north of the Neom region. The 60-square-kilometre skiing and
outdoor-activity resort will offer year-round skiing and is set to
host the 2029 Asian Winter Games.
Sindalah is planned as an island resort within the Red Sea. Aimed
at the yachting community, the 840,000-square-metre island will have
an 86-berth marina and numerous hotels.
What architecture studios are
designing Neom?
Only a handful of architecture studios have been officially announced
as designers of the Neom project. US studio Aecom is
listed as a partner on the Neom website.
The developer of Neom revealed that UK studio Zaha
Hadid Architects, Dutch practice UNStudio,
US studio Aedas,
German studio LAVA and
Australian studio Bureau Proberts are working on the design of the
Trojena ski resort.
Dutch studio Mecanoo also
confirmed to Dezeen that they were working on Trojena.
The development will also include the Oxagon port
Italian superyacht and architecture studio Luca Dini Design and
Architecture has been announced as the designer of the Sindalah resort.
Numerous other studios have been connected to Neom, with multiple
studios named within an exhibition of The Line in Riyadh. However,
the exhibition did not make clear the extent of involvement of the
studios named and several told Dezeen that they are no longer working
on the project.
US studio Morphosis has
long been rumoured to be the lead architect of The Line and was
included in the exhibition. Its founderThom
Mayne appeared to confirm thisat
a talk last month, in which he stated he was working on a city
that he described as "a big planning thing in Saudi Arabia that I
can't talk about".
Other studios believed to be working on The Line and named in the
exhibition include: US practices Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, Tom
Wiscombe Architecture, Oyler Wu Collaborative and HOK;
UK studios Adjaye
Associates and Peter
Cook's studio CHAP; Austria studios Coop
Himmelb(l)au and Delugan Meissl Associated Architects; and Italian
practice Studio
Fuksas.
Leading the design of the project is former deputy mayor of Barcelona
Antoni Vives, who is The Line's chief urban planning officer.
The first element scheduled for completion is the Sindalah luxury
island, with the developer of Neom aiming to welcome its first guests
in early 2024.
Drone footage revealed last year showed preparation works at The Line
site
Port city Oxagon will follow shortly after, with the first residents
planned to move in by 2024 and the onshore part of the city due to
complete by 2030. Ski resort Trojena is set
to open in 2026.
According to the developer, the largest element of Neom, The Line,
will "be rolled out between now and 2045". The aim is for one million
people to be living in The Line by 2030. Some commentators have
expressed scepticism about these timelines.
According to the developer, 2,400 staff already live and work at Neom.
Why is Neom controversial?
The Neom project has proved controversial due to three main concerns –
sustainability, liveability and human rights.
While there are broad concerns about human rights in Saudi Arabia and
for the people who will be building the gigantic project, the direct
controversies connected to Neom are related to evictions taking place
ahead of construction.
The area that is set to be developed is the historic homeland of the
Huwaitat tribe and it is estimated that around
20,000 tribe members will be relocated to accommodate the planned
development.
Experts have criticised claims about The Line's sustainability and
liveability claims
However, Neom – and The Line in particular – have been criticised for
the expected embodied
carbon associated with building the project. Philip Oldfield, head
of the built environment school at the University of New South Wales,
has estimated that upwards of 1.8 billion tonnes of embodied carbon
dioxide will be produced.
Experts talking to Dezeen were also concerned over the mirrored
facades' impact on animal and birdlife.
On liveability, Bin Salman stated that The Line "will challenge the
traditional flat, horizontal cities and create a model for nature
preservation and enhanced human liveability".
However, according to experts, the liveability claims would rest on
how the city is maintained.
"These images project a degree of control which is very difficult to
retain, especially over a period of time, even in a very autocratic
society," said associate professor of architecture at Princeton
University Marshall Brown.
