At the second financial industry conference, Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan accepted an exclusive interview with reporters. He said that China and Saudi Arabia have one thing in common, that is, they both have long-term plans. China's Belt and Road Initiative and Saudi Arabia's NEOM New City are long-term, green and sustainable long-term plans that will benefit not only the people of the country, but also the whole world.

THE LINE city, as its name suggests, is like a line, and its height may reach 500 meters (Shanghai Oriental Pearl Tower is 468 meters high). There is no need to open roads in the plan, no cars, strictly speaking, no private cars, because Saudi Arabia may introduce flying taxis, and the building The bottom directly connects to the high-speed train (about 20 minutes commute from the beginning to the end of the city), and the whole city is driven by renewable energy. Not only that, about 95% of the land in THE LINE will be protected, and the building will open up vertical green spaces (similar to an upgraded version of the vertical forest). To sum up, this city allows you to reach your work unit from your home two floors up.

It is reported that Saudi Arabia has announced the construction of the world's largest solar power plant. It is reported that Saudi Arabia and Volocopter have established a joint venture company to create a customized public vertical mobility system for NEOM. An additional investment of US$175 million will be made in early 2022, and 15 flying taxis have been ordered. In addition, in November, the promoters of NEOM also held roadshows in Berlin and Paris to seek investment and cooperation. It is reported that they have also held such activities in the UK and the United States.

In terms of construction, China State Construction announced in October that it has won the second and third bids of the NEOM New City Traffic Tunnel (Mountain Part), with a project value of 7.86 billion. This project is the pilot project of The Line. Saudi Arabia hopes to welcome the first batch of residents in 2024, and initially complete the construction in 2030. It may take 50 years to gradually complete the entire NEOM new city concept. Editor/Xu Shengpeng