He has already built a palace there.īut at least the pyramids were based on what was achievable at the time. “I want to build my pyramids,” he told advisers. MBS, 36, reportedly found the location for his dream city in Saudi Arabia’s remote Tabuk province after landing his helicopter there. Mohammad bin Salman is said to have told his advisers: ‘I want to build my pyramids’Īnnounced by the Prince in 2017, Neom is the flagship project in a master plan to diversify Saudi Arabia’s oil-dependent economy as the world increasingly turns to greener energy alternatives.įive years later, Neom - which MBS insists it must complete by 2030 - was plagued by setbacks as an army of workers and consultants struggled to cope with his erratic temper and ever-changing ideas. It would be the greatest structure ever built – but could it become history’s most epic folly?īin Salman heads an authoritarian regime that routinely jails, tortures and assassinates opponents – most notably journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018 – but MBS, as he is known, has struggled to be recognized internationally as a reformer and moderniser.Īnd it hardly gets much more modern than Neom, a mixture of the Greek word for “new” and the Arabic word for “future”.īin Salman heads an authoritarian regime that routinely tortures and kills opponents – most notably journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018 – but he is keen to be seen as a modernizer The big question, even with his country’s $620 billion sovereign wealth fund, not to mention the second largest proven oil reserves in the world, is whether his vision is just too fantastic to ever be realized. Now it’s the turn of Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud with his plans to found Neom.Īnd it’s already struggling to take shape in one of the most barren places on earth.ĭetailed plans for this massive metropolis were unveiled this week, and with an estimated price tag of up to $1 trillion, it’s clear they’re only going to get fancier.

Throughout history, megalomaniac dreamers have tried to match the ambition of the Egyptian pharaohs and build their own equivalent of the great pyramids, with varying degrees of success. The 105-mile monolith will boast a stadium on a mountain, a ski resort on a Jurassic Island The sci-fi architecture – often reminiscent of the 1982 futuristic film Blade Runner – is indeed influenced by the masters of Hollywood special effects.

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