Saudi Arabia's $500 billion megacity, NEOM, has awarded contracts to finance, build, and operate its Construction Village to two national companies. The Village is set to house 30,000 workers who will move to the site to develop various areas of the NEOM project. It will later expand to house more than 100,000 residents, NEOM said in a statement seen by Saudi Gazette. "The awarding of these contracts is another milestone in our journey to turn the Neom dream into a reality," Neom chief executive Nadhmi Al-Nasr said in the statement. "Building a giga-project the size of Neom is a great challenge that requires manpower to settle there for years to come." Al-Tamimi Group will build two residential areas inside the village with a housing capacity of 10,000 residents each, while Saudi Arabian Trading & Construction Company (SATCO) will build a third one with the same capacity. The two developers will operate the Village for 10 years. "We are planning to build these housing projects for the people who will build NEOM with the highest standards of quality and to set a benchmark for all future projects," said Tariq Al-Tamimi, chairman of Tamimi Group. NEOM currently has $500 billion in planned financial support from Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF). It is expected to be an eco-friendly project with state-of-the-art technology. Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman had earlier announced that the first town in NEOM would be ready by 2020, and every town would be complete by 2025. The cross-border city is located in the northwestern Tabuk Province, near the Red Sea and the borders that Saudi Arabia shares with Egypt and Jordan. It is slated to incorporate smart city technologies and also serve as a top tourist destination in the Middle East region. — SG
