Twenty-five current and former employees told Bloomberg they are struggling to realize near-impossible plans for Neom, now five years in development. Workers say there is a culture of fear of telling MBS – who has locked out many of his own family – that some elements of his vision are not possible.
Dozens have reportedly left as millions of dollars are spent on architects, futurists and Hollywood production designers, according to Bloomberg.
In addition to Neom’s plans, two mirrored buildings that form the Mirror Line are to run parallel to each other for 75 miles and be 1,600 feet tall, house up to five million people and cost about $1 trillion.
Vertical farming will be integrated into the buildings, so residents – who will pay a subscription fee to have three meals a day – will have their vegetables “autonomously harvested and connected” and taken to their “co-living kitchens”. the WSJ reported.
A sports stadium will be located 984 feet above the ground, and a high-speed train will pass under the buildings. A marina will run between the two buildings, where residents will be able to moor their yachts.
Designers face countless problems
Planning documents seen by the Wall Street Journal detail the grandiose plans for the sci-fi-style skyscraper, but also highlight the myriad problems facing designers trying to meet MBS’s wishes.
He unveiled the concept for The Line last year, announcing that his project would be a “civilizational revolution that puts people first.”
The 105-mile “rectilinear city” will be zero-carbon, he said, with no cars and no pollution.
However, Neom has already faced serious criticism for its human rights record. In the initial stages of construction, the Al-Howeitat tribe was forcibly evicted from the area, at one stage leading to a shootout and a resident being shot dead by security forces.
Some of the most prominent foreign architects and designers are flocking to work on MBS’s Vision 2030 plan, many aware that their work will likely never be used given the project’s outrageous ambition.
If successfully completed, the mirror line would run from the Gulf of Aqaba through a mountain range that would house the Saudi government and into the desert plains, according to the documents.
The building has no set completion date, but experts believe it will likely take up to 50 years. The kingdom is extremely wealthy and enjoys huge windfalls from high oil prices.
Not all of Saudi Arabia’s dream construction projects have been completed. The planned world’s tallest skyscraper was shelved after the latest oil boom stalled.
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