Oil prices soared on Monday after an attack this weekend on key oil facilities in Saudi Arabia caused the most serious disruption to global supplies on record.

-

Amr Nabil / AP / SIPA

Saudi Arabia, the world's largest exporter of crude oil, announced on Sunday the launch of an ecological city with "zero cars, zero roads, zero CO2 emissions" in Neom, an area in the northwest of the kingdom currently development.

Futuristic and touristy region, Neom is on the list of the many mega-projects underway intended to diversify the economy of Saudi Arabia which depends very largely on the export of black gold.

"As chairman of the board of directors of Neom, I present to you" The Line ", a city that can accommodate a million inhabitants, 170 km long and which will preserve 95% of natural areas", announced the prince heir Mohammed ben Salman in a statement broadcast on television.

"There will be no cars, no roads and zero carbon emissions," added the de facto leader of the Arab world's largest economy, regularly ranked among the most polluting countries in the world.

Urban spaces will be redefined on THE LINE.

People and planet will live in harmony with nature over 170km of hyper-connected future communities.

https://t.co/eMbgke48am



Welcome to the new future.


Welcome to THE LINE. # WhatisTHELINE pic.twitter.com/hxjvIDevD4

- NEOM (@NEOM) January 10, 2021

Start of construction first quarter 2021

"We must transform cities into cities of the future", he declared, speaking of a "civilizational revolution".

Details of the project will be communicated later, assured Prince Mohammed, before showing computer-generated images of the “line” as well as landscapes of pristine deserts and blue seas.

The pedestrian city will have services such as schools or health centers, as well as green spaces, but also high-speed public transport, with no trip expected to last more than 20 minutes, according to a statement from Neom. .

It will also be based on artificial intelligence (AI) technologies and “low-carbon equipment, powered by 100% renewable energy”.

Construction of "The Line" will begin in the first quarter of 2021 and will be financed by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), the main instrument of the country's economic diversification policy.

The project will create 380,000 jobs and its contribution to GDP is estimated at 180 billion riyals (over 39 billion euros) by 2030, according to the Neom press release.

Culture

What to expect for 2021?

"In the next two years, we will see chaos"

Culture

War of the future: In the coming years, "robots will go into combat", forecasts Emmanuel Chiva

  • City

  • Environment

  • World

  • Car

  • Saudi Arabia

  • ecology

  • Planet