RIYADH: Saudi Arabia"s $500-billion gigaproject, NEOM, is expected to issue the request for qualification for contracts related to the high-speed rail scheme The Line project, Meed reported. Within the next two months the future city that is currently in the development phase in Saudi Arabia, will issue the request, which will be handled in two packages; Package A and Package B. Citing close sources to the project, Meed reported that Package A will cover spring and connector projects, along with works related to signalling, telecommunications and power systems. Package B deals with civil works and other related utility components. Meanwhile, NEOM had received bids on March 28 for the contract to build tunnels in its railway system. Contractors that bid for the work include; Acciona from Spain and India"s Larsen & Toubro Saudi Arabia"s Al-Bawani and China Railway Greece"s Archirodon, Samsung C&T and Hyundai Engineering & Construction from South Korea. Spain"s FCC, Saudi Arabia"s Shibh al-Jazira Contracting Co., and China State Construction Engineering Corporation PowerChina Launched in 2021, The Line is one of the main highlights of the NEOM project. It is a 170-kilometre long linear city that aims to have 1 million citizens without conventional cars, no streets, and no carbon emissions. NEOM is one of the flagship projects Saudi Arabia is seeking to use to transform it socio-politically as part of its Vision 2030 including the move away from an oil-dependent economy.