New satellite photos show desert ski resort emerging at world's biggest construction site
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New satellite imagery reveals advancing work at a mountain ski resort in Saudi Arabia as part of the ambitious Neom project, the world's biggest construction site.
Newsweek has reached out to Neom's team for comment on the latest development shown by photos from Planet Labs and provided exclusively to Newsweek.
Why It Matters
The outdoor ski resort in a desert country known for being one of the hottest in the world symbolises the ambition of the megaproject of Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman at Neom. Most of the snow will be artificial.
The images show the advances on the site in the absence of official updates and with some critics questioning how far work is progressing and questioning whether it has been affected by setbacks.
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What To Know
Trojena, on the mountain of Jebel al Lawz in the northwest of Saudi Arabia, rises to more than 8,500 feet above sea level, according to the project's description on Neom's website.
The project—envisioned as the world's first "vertical ski village"—extends over an area of nearly 870 square miles and is set to include about 18 miles of ski slopes, in addition to a dozen hotels and tens of thousands of shops and restaurants.
It also includes a giant man-made lake that would take up to 15 billion gallons of water, according to Trojena's Instagram account.
Philip Gullett, Trojena's Executive Director at Neom, called the project's progress "a military operation," citing the challenge of building infrastructure in remote mountains, speaking this week at the Saudi Giga Projects Summit, according to Zawya platform.
Discover life at new heights—at the Ski Village. Experience the joy of waking up above the clouds, surrounded by endless experiences at every level. This is mountain living, elevated in every sense. Welcome to a lifestyle where the sky is truly the limit. pic.twitter.com/nxA11ZIQTz — TROJENA (@NEOMTROJENA) March 5, 2025
Neom, the flagship element of Vision 2030, Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman's strategy to diversify its economy away from oil dependence, has been accused of having an unrealistic scope and ambitious timeline, with other concerns pertaining to the project's effects on climate change and the kingdom's human rights abuse allegations.
"You're changing a natural ecosystem which can have compounding impacts," said climate consultant Ahmed el-Droubi, currently the global campaigns manager at Climate Action Network International, according to Euro News in 2022.
Saudi Arabia's advances were hailed by U.S. President Donald Trump during a visit to the country this week which culminated in a $600 billion investment deal.
What People Are Saying
Philip Gullett, Executive Director and Region Head of Trojena, quoted on Neom's website: "From up there you can look over to the Gulf of Aqaba too. And over to Egypt as well as the whole NEOM region."
Richard Scott, Senior Development Manager at Trojena: "Most of the snow in Trojena will be machine-made snow."
What Happens Next
The ski resort is due to be completed for the Asian Winter Games in 2029 to be hosted in Saudi Arabia.
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