Abandoned in this case will mean:
Explicitly cancelled
Shelved indefinitely (like Jeddah Tower) with no measurable progress in design or construction
Scaled back to something vastly more modest (at my disgression)
I will try to judge these criteria as objectively as possible, I do have the personal opinion the project is unrealistic though.
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Scaled back from 170 km to just 2.4 km, is that enough to resolve YES, @JemBishop?
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/saudi-arabia-scales-back-neom-plans-focus-world-cup-asian-games
CEO has left…
“Aiman al-Mudaifer, a Public Investment Fund real-estate executive, was named acting CEO, according to an email sent Tuesday to employees from the Neom board. It called the move “a strategic decision of the Board and a natural evolution.” ”
I doubt an abandoned project would be touting their progress:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLK5uwp9qD8
@Tripping They haven’t said they won’t do the 170km though. As per the Bloomberg article they’ll continue working towards that in stages. What’s happened here is a delay not a downsize.
@costlySignal well there are conflicting reports. First there was an article saying it's being cut back. Then an article saying the same but "by 2030" and not ruling out more work after that.
If the initial report quoted below was correct, it would be enough for resolution. Problem is the source was anonymous and so there isn't official confirmation.
Sounds to me like it probably has been cut back, but not publicly admitted yet.
Saudis Scale Back Ambition for $1.5 Trillion Desert Project Neom - Bloomberg
By 2030, the government at one point hoped to have 1.5 million residents living in The Line, a sprawling, futuristic city it plans to contain within a pair of mirror-clad skyscrapers. Now, officials expect the development will house fewer than 300,000 residents by that time, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Officials have long said The Line would be built in stages and they expect it to ultimately cover a 170-kilometer stretch of desert along the coast. With the latest pullback, though, officials expect to have just 2.4 kilometers of the project completed by 2030, the person familiar with the matter said, who asked not to be named discussing non-public information.
https://thecradle.co/articles-id/24316
Saudi cuts back NEOM desert city plans by 98.6 percent
[...] an unnamed official told Bloomberg on 5 April that the project would be scaled back to 2.4 kilometers, with a reduced capacity of less than 300,000 residents.