Abdullah bin Amer Alswaha, Minister of Communications and Information Technology in Saudi Arabia discusses NEOM and Vision 2030. He speaks with Manus Cranny on "Bloomberg Daybreak: Middle East."

In line with the Vision 2030 goals of revolutionizing environmental sustainability, Desert Technologies (DT), a Saudi solar energy firm, launched for the first time its Sahara containerized solar generator (CSG), in collaboration with Green Corp Konnection (GCK), to power part of the bivouac in NEOM during this year’s Dakar Rally.

The unit used one small container (20 feet) and two standard containers (40 feet) to generate 62 kW of energy to partially power the assembly area for rally drivers.

A joint venture comprising Air Products, ACWA Power and NEOM has hired financial firm Lazard to advise it on a planned $5 billion hydrogen project in the NEOM high-tech business zone in Saudi Arabia, sources said.  The project, which will be equally owned by the three partners, will produce green ammonia for export to global markets, the companies said in July last year.

The $5 billion project in NEOM will consist of a 1.2 million tonnes a year green ammonia plant, which will use hydrogen produced from an electrolyser powered by more than 4 GW of solar, wind and storage. Production is due to begin in 2025.

Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, has unveiled plans for a 100-mile belt of zero-energy walkable communities for a million people.  The linear city will have no cars or streets, with all residents living within a five-minute walk of essential facilities. Bin Salman announced plans for THE LINE in a video where he described it as a "civilisational revolution that puts humans first."

According to Bin Salman, who is also the chairman of the NEOM company board of directors, construction of THE LINE will start in the first quarter of 2021.

The city will have no cars or streets, with everything its inhabitants need accessible within a five-minute walk.

Edelman agreed this month to provide communications services to NEOM, the $500B mega-city that is the linchpin of Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s plan to diversify the Kingdom’s oil-based economy.

Fees for strategic counsel, media relations, stakeholder engagement and content development are capped at $75K per-month under the pact that runs through February.

A formal contract between the No. 1 independent PR firm and NEOM, which is owned by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, is currently under negotiation.

NEOM has begun working from its brand new headquarters a move which will accelerate the pace of growth of the $500bn super project.  More than 450 employees are now based at the new HQ, which is 170-kilometres from Tabuk. That number will increase to 700 by the end of the year.

For those unaware, NEOM is the hugely ambitious project based in Saudi Arabia that will see an area the size of Belgium developed to become a smart city. The ambitious project will hope to be a hub for international innovation and cooperation.  The company will continue to have an office in Riyadh, but the real fun will be had from the new HQ.

Speaking about the move, NEOM CEO Nadhmi Al Nasr said “The relocation of our headquarters to NEOM is an important milestone in our journey and will act as a springboard for growth.”

Alluring majestic mountains, apparently carrying in their folds an open museum of history with vast treasures of rock inscriptions and ancient Islamic writings, overlook Saudi Arabia’s ambitious NEOM project in the northwestern Tabuk region.

There are numerous mountainous regions with rock artworks and inscriptions that date back to different chronological periods, ranging from the Paleolithic to the Islamic period. These rock arts adorn the mountains and heights of the Hasma hilltops, located within the Bajda mountains west of the Tabuk region.