Saudi City Gets Dutch Aid To Grow Crops In The Desert

Saudi Arabia is teaming up with a Dutch greenhouse company to create "a synthetic climate” to make the desert bloom.

Photo Insert: Saudi Arabia is carving out an area around the size of 15 soccer fields to form a horticulture oasis on the outskirts of Neom, an entirely new city being built on the Red Sea coast that extends out into the desert.

It’s carving out an area around the size of 15 soccer fields to form a horticulture oasis on the outskirts of Neom, an entirely new city being built on the Red Sea coast that extends out into the desert, Cagan Koc reported for Bloomberg.

The commitment marks the biggest food-tech investment for a country whose largely arid landscape and extreme summer temperatures have long left it reliant on imports to supply most food, Japan Times also reported.

The Netherlands is noted not only for being below sea level but also for dredging and reclamation as well as robust food production and is one of the planet’s agricultural powerhouses.

The project is just the start, according to Dutch horticulturist Van Der Hoeven, whose $120 million contract with the Saudi government entails the design and construction of two test facilities on Neom’s outskirts, along with their service and operation for several years.

WEEKLY FEATURE : MVP Group Keeps Lights On During Pandemic