Saudi Arabia took its Neom megaproject roadshow to China. This is amid speculation about the scope of the project and its finances.
Neom megaproject officials visited Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong last week. All in the hopes of courting Chinese investors and shed more light on the mysterious megacity.
While no deals have been announced, one attendee told Agence France-Presse that the exhibition helped make Neom “less mysterious.”
Neom Megaproject Future
A private showcase provided attendees with an “immersive experience” exploring The Line, a 105-mile-long futuristic city. Along with Oxagon, which promises to redefine the “traditional industrial model”; Trojena, Neom’s mountain resort. In addition, Sindalah, a luxury island in the Red Sea that open to the public later this year, per a press release.
Neom officials did not address recent reports that plans for the hugely expensive desert project were being scaled back.
Earlier this month, Bloomberg reported that Saudi Arabia had significantly reduced estimates for the number of people expected to live in The Line. Officials cut the number of expected residents for the “horizontal skyscraper”. It has been revised from 1.5 million by 2030 to fewer than 300,000, the report said.
Neon Megaproject On Track To Hit Population Target
Wider concerns have reportedly been raised about the trillion-dollar investments in Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Vision 2030 project.
The financial realities of the project, which could cost as much as $500 billion. They have started to cause alarm within the Saudi government, Bloomberg reported. The country has also started borrowing to help fund Neom and other Vision 2030 “megaprojects,” The Wall Street Journal reported in February.
The Neom project is also planning to issue bonds for the first time, Bloomberg reported last week. The megacity project could raise up to $1.3 billion by selling Islamic bonds, or sukuk. The outlet reported, citing unnamed sources.
The Neom Road Show has also visited many cities. These include Seoul, Tokyo, Singapore, New York City, Boston, Washington, D.C., Miami, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Paris, Berlin, and London.
