Saudi Arabia’s sci-fi-style giga-project is bankrolled by a regime not known for supporting individual liberties, but it has the support of a surprising number of Australians.
Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time.Welcome to the “land of the future”, where the buildings look like they have been designed by artificial intelligence on acid: the product of algorithms uncoupled from the mundane constraints of practicality, price and place. A state-of-the-art yachting town being constructed on the Gulf of Aqaba could easily have been modelled on the mythical realm of Wakanda from the Marvel blockbuster,.
Intended as the home for some 9 million people, future residents have been promised a car-less habitat with “all daily essentials” always within a five-minute walk. “It can’t be understood until it’s built,” said the Pritzker-winning American architect Thom Mayne, who has worked on the masterplan, a statement at once bold and baffling.
Of the more than 80 nationalities thought to be taking part in the project, only Saudi Arabia itself and Britain have a greater number of people working on the project than Australia. Some have been described as “coin-up players” motivated by the remuneration packages on offer. Others have been lured by the chance to work on a once-in-a-lifetime scheme where the creative opportunities are so limitless.
It’s not a decision he has so far come to regret. “Looking at the hole in the land where The Line joins the sea, I could barely believe the scope and the scale. That’s the galvanising thing that has brought people to this project. I probably feel more energised now than for a long time.” His health has also improved because of the Saudi prohibition on alcohol. “This place is fuelled by sobriety,” he grins.So far, it’s been an educational experience. “It’s changing my world view,” he says.
In the years since Khashoggi’s murder, Saudi Arabia’s image overhaul has gone into overdrive. It has staged concerts by Mariah Carey and Justin Bieber and, in 2021, hosted its first Formula One grand prix. This month, the Saudis formally announced their bid to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup, which is seen as a formality since it is the only country to enter the bidding contest.
The project’s environmental credentials are also murky, and have brought allegations of greenwashing. Central to the oil kingdom’s extreme makeover is the boast that NEOM will set the gold standard in sustainability and environmentalism. “It will run on 100 per cent renewable energy and 95 per cent of land will be preserved for nature,” claims NEOM’s website.
Bad urbanism is another complaint from those who question the desirability of a vertical city. If, as planned, The Line becomes the home to 9 million people, some 260,000 people will be crowded into every square kilometre on average, according to Philip Oldfield’s calculations. The City of Sydney, by contrast, harbours 8000 people per square kilometre; the City of Melbourne, 4300.