![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/SEI_116476325-b173.jpg\")
\n\t\tThe futuristic city could stretch 105 miles if completed (Picture: AFP)<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tThe futuristic city could stretch 105 miles if completed (Picture: AFP)<\/p>\n
Saudi Arabia<\/a>\u2019s \u00a31.2 trillion plan to revolutionise the way people live is being re-evaluated to see if it\u2019s even possible.<\/p>\n The Line, a futuristic city in the desert, was meant to transform the sands into a solar-powered city of 9 million people across a 105-mile stretch of mirror-clad skyscrapers from the mountains to the Red Sea.<\/p>\n Some 1.5 million of these inhabitants were supposed to be settled by 2030, and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman hoped it would rival the pyramids of Egypt<\/a> as an icon of timeless grandiosity.<\/p>\n But this week, the project has entered a new phase of evaluation. External consultants are reportedly in talks to see if the project is still feasible.<\/p>\n After pouring millions into the project, the country might have to take a step back as the price of oil fell, increasing the country\u2019s deficit. <\/p>\n In a statement, a spokesperson for Neom explained: \u2018As is typical with large-scale, multiyear projects, strategic reviews are common practice and occur several times over the course of a major development project or infrastructure program.<\/p>\n \t\t \u2018The Line remains a strategic priority and Neom is focused on maintaining operational continuity, improving efficiencies and accelerating progress to match the overall vision and objectives of the project.\u2019<\/p>\n Previously, one investor started to dismiss people working on the site, according to a document seen by Bloomberg.<\/p>\n Further employee dismissals on the project could happen if Saudi continues to reckon with its current financial situation. <\/p>\n It comes as last year, Giles Pendleton, COO for The Line, shared images of The Line to check \u2018naysayers\u2019 who doubted the plans would ever become reality.<\/p>\n If the city is created, it would become the most densely populated place on earth, seven times more cramped than Singapore or Hong Kong.<\/p>\n Such a scale-back has rattled those constructing an AI oasis for the uber-rich<\/a>. These include an eight-sided port and an industrial city floating on the Red Sea<\/a> right at the edge of Neom.<\/p>\n Another lavish investment is the luxury tourist island of Sindalah, also made by Neom, which boasts a global yachting hub. <\/p>\n \t\t But the kingdom\u2019s Public Investment Fund is yet to approve this year\u2019s budget for Neom\u2019s city and its tech revolution.<\/p>\n Announced in 2021, the vision for Neom \u2013 also known as The Line \u2013 is a city full of green spaces, free of cars and with all your daily needs within a five-minute walk<\/a>.<\/p>\n More than 100 million cubic metres of sand have already been moved as contractors excavate a 75-mile canyon<\/a> in the desert.<\/p>\n Through the middle will run a tree-lined canal between the towering lines of skyscrapers.<\/p>\n \t\t There\u2019ll be a marina for its residents\u2019 superyachts, a members-only beach club, a luxury golf resort, and a sports stadium 1,000ft above ground.<\/p>\n As if that wasn\u2019t enough pampered living, there\u2019ll even be a network of robots and AI to make their lives even easier.<\/p>\n Issues with the proposed mega-city <\/p>\n Despite claims that the hanging glass apartments will \u2018offer points of connection between humans and nature\u2019, critics have accused Neom of posing a threat to both people and animals.<\/p>\n Tribes have been cleared to make way for its construction. Security forces have been accused of shooting dead a resident<\/a>.<\/p>\n And bird experts warn it will be a \u2018death trap\u2019 for millions of birds<\/a> migrating between Europe and Africa each year.<\/p>\n \u2018Birds flying into tall windows is a serious problem, and this is a building that is 500m high going across Saudi Arabia, with windmills on top,\u2019 Professor William Sutherland, director of research in Cambridge University\u2019s zoology department, told The Times.<\/p>\n \u2018It\u2019s also kind of like a mirror, so you don\u2019t really see it. So unless they do something about it, there\u2019s a serious risk that there could be lots of damage to migratory birds.\u2019<\/p>\n That\u2019s if the futuristic plans ever become more than just a line in the sand.<\/p>\n Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk<\/a>.<\/p>\n For more stories like this, check our news page<\/a>.<\/p>\n Arrow![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/SEI_116476342-0da0.jpg\")
\n\t\tThe futuristic city would stretch 100 metres into the air (Picture: AFP)<\/p>\n![\"G20](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-1441576097.jpg\")
\n\t\tThe Line is a vanity project of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (Picture: Leon Neal\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/SEI_199141054-2930.jpg\")
\n\t\tTrucks hauled sand as construction began on The Line at Neom (Picture: Giles Pendleton)<\/p>\n
\nMORE: The tragic life of Saudi \u2018Sleeping Prince\u2019 who never woke up from 20-year coma<\/a><\/p>\n