ORYX Tower Rendering during Schematic Design Phase, NEOM City, Saudi Arabia

ORYX TOWER

NEOM City, Saudi Arabia, 2023 - ongoing

NEOM selected Choi+Shine Architects to develop six

iconic, high voltage towers to express its vision for the

future and its environmentally and socially sensitive

energy masterplan.

Each design was developed as a family of towers,

conforming to NEOM's guidelines while closely working

with NEOM’s engineering and management teams.

Each design was analyzed for structural and electrical

performance and studied installation, fabrication,

maintenance methods and cost feasibility, to ensure constructibility.

Saint Louis Gateway Arch, 1965

EARLY SKETCHES

The initial focus on the head and upper body of oryx as the overall form of the tower. Later development engages process of simplification and abstraction, in order to find the essence of the idea in the most recognisable and iconic form. With the horns of the oryx , the transmission

towers could be introduced as a gateway to a new terrain, and a symbol of a new era.

ADAPTATION FOR A NEW ERA

With its speed and endurance for the survival in harsh desert, oryx symbolises adaptation and resilience and presented as a symbol of beauty and elegance in Islamic music, art and literature.

It also represents the preservation effort since the extinction in the wild in the 70s: legacy of human intervention for the harmonious coexistence.

ORYX Towers located along a new line development in NEOM city. The simulation reflects different terrain conditions and environments along the new line.

Credit: King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST)

The Tomb of Zomorrod Khatun showing muqarnas, honeycomb structure representing celestial body at the entry portal of Islamic architecture.

Left: Photo and sketch from the site visit

NEOM LANDSCAPE TYPOLOGY

The monumentality and sculptural quality of free standing rock formation inspired the project.

INCORPORATING THE VISUAL LANGUAGE OF LANDSCAPE

Continuous and fluid structures relates the tower to the landscape. The design blurs the boundary between landscape and

infrastructure, so as to minimise its physical impact on the landscape and reduce its visibility, while adapting its unique landscape and locality.

COMPACT DESIGN

Avoiding visual and physical clutter, monolithic design keeps the site as close to its initial state as possible. The minimum footprint of the tower allows for adaptability and efficiency in layout.

Suspension Towers

INNOVATION: INTEGRATED INSULATORS

Taking a departure from a conventional approach which considers the transmission towers as a separate entity to merely support the conductors and insulators overhead, MOON tower incorporates insulators as an integral part within the tower.

Suspension Towers

This innovative and comprehensive approach allows for the

simple and elegant design and engineering solutions. It enhances the sculptural quality of the tower, reducing the visual clutter from the functional components for the electrical transmission.

Tension Tower

VERSATILE FOMRS

For both single and dual circuits, and for both AC or DC, the design allows for the variable line-to-tower orientation.

Oryx Tower can be both clad lattice structure or monopole and fisnished in mirrored chrome, powder coating, natural or anodized finishes.

Suspension Towers with optional glass insulator chains

Suspension Towers with composite insulators

Suspension Towers with integrated insulators

PERCEPTION OF MULTIPLE

The design considers viewer’s perception of multiple towers in mobility. The project explored the varying sightline and possible formal variations in sequence.