Building work has started on a “Hidden Marina” forming part of Saudi Arabia‘s £1trillion desert megaproject have been unveiled. Neom’s 350,000 square metre scheme is the first phase of The Line development, a linear smart city in the country’s Tabuk Province.
Three interlinked modules made up of 80,000 homes for 200,000 people comprise the “Hidden Marina” scheme, which Neom claims will dwarf Dubai‘s landmark Burj Khalifa. The developer’s CDO, Denis Hickey, announced the start of construction at a PIF Private Sector Forum in Riyadh.
He is reported by the Saudi Gazette as saying Hidden Marina will stretch 1.6 miles (2.5km) and rise 500 meters. Mr Hickey added: “With a built-up area surpassing 21 million square meters, the scale of Hidden Marina is unprecedented, dwarfing global benchmarks such as the Burj Khalifa, which has a built-up area of just 350,000 square meters.”
Mr Hickey said Neom has already deployed “significant resources” to lay the groundwork for the “ambitious urban revolution”. He explained that 140,000 workers are involved in the building work, with more than 5,000 “dedicated” to Neom.
The CDO touted Neom’s workforce as including 40% Saudi workers and others from 100 countries, claiming this is testament to the scheme’s world-wide appeal and vision.
Neom’s “Hidden Marina” plan also includes 9,000 hotel rooms, shops and commercial space as well as room for public services, such as schools. The man-made marina will also be home to a stadium for the 2034 World Cup.
Giles Pendleton, Chief Operating Officer at The Line, posted an update on social media this week in which he said piling work has almost been completed for Hidden Marina.
His LinkedIn post was accompanied by drone footage showing building work well underway, with excavations carved into the desert landscape.
Designs for the scheme show the once complete it will be covered in mirrored surfaces and occupy a vast space.
Computer generated images show yachts and cruise ships moored alongside a sleek marina, with the vertical city in the background.
Construction of “Hidden Marina” is due to be completed by 2030. The Line broke ground in April 2022 and is a fifth of the way towards completion.
Mr Pendleton recently told Al Arabiya News that work on the “Hidden Marina” is “the most extensive infrastructure excavation project in the world”.
He explained that “Hidden Marina” would have 30,000 piles, dwarfing the 104 piles of Kuala Lumpur’s Petronas Towers, which are 452 metres tall.
The Line itself will be at the heart of NEOM, a sustainable, car-free city on the Red Coast masterminded by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
