No one is surprised that Neom – Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s $1.5 trillion plan to build a futuristic megacity smack dab in the middle of the desert – has proven to be a disaster. Its centerpiece was supposed to be a massive skyscraper called The Line, over 100 miles in length, which could accommodate millions of people, although the rules of reality always suggested it would be impossible to pull off.
But, according to new reporting From financial TimesThere may still be a twist in the saga for us. The Saudi government is now considering drastically reducing the size of the linear city-skyscraper so it can turn Neom into a — we swear we’re not kidding — data center.
It’s a proposal that smacks of the Saudi leadership’s desperation to find a way out of the billion-dollar hole it has dug for itself, as the dysfunctional monarchy rushes to follow everyone else and cash in on the AI race. But royal insiders briefed on the matter insist that, in fact, it is proof of how flexible the Saudi government is.
“This shows that the system has the ability to adjust to its goals,” one person said. foot.
The pivot was proposed as Riyadh completes its year-long review of NEOM’s progress, and continues a pattern of belt-tightening on the government’s myriad, extremely expensive investments – including everything from Buying entire sports leagues and teams To competitive video games. Purportedly meant to diversify the country’s oil-dependent economy, they are now becoming more burdensome as oil prices continue to decline, draining the state’s purported trillion-dollar public investment fund. cash is low.
Jumping on the AI bandwagon, the low-hanging fruit, may be attractive to Saudis. and according to footAccording to the source, Neom’s proximity to the Gulf of Aqaba makes it suitable for hosting data centers, even though the seawater cooling is not ideal. “Data centers need water cooling and this one is on the coast so it will have sea water cooling,” the source said. “So this will be a major hub for data centers.”
It’s unclear to what extent The Line will be scaled back, but it’s clearly not going away entirely. FT The source said architects were already working on redesigning the megastructure into a more “modest” – and radically altered – project.
“The line will be a completely different concept. It will use the existing infrastructure in a completely different way,” the person said. foot.
The linear city has been controversial since its inception due to its sheer scale, excessive cost, and human rights abuses suffered by construction workers, with thousands believed to have died while working on the project. Now it may face its biggest reality check ever, although Neom has repeatedly denied previous reports It is suggested that its size can be reduced.
As it stands, its fate depends on the ongoing review, which is expected to conclude by or around the end of the first quarter of this year.
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