Neom's board of directors announced on Tuesday the appointment of Aiman Al-Mudaifer as acting CEO of the company following the unexpected departure of Nadhmi Al-Nasr, who was put in charge of the project in 2018.

Longtime CEO Nadhmi al-Nasr left Neom, Saudi Arabia’s marquee development, which has been plagued by delays, cost overruns and staff turnover.

DUBAI/RIYADH (Reuters) -Nadhmi al-Nasr, the long-time chief executive of the $500 billion NEOM mega-project at the heart of Saudi Arabia's drive to diversify away from oil, has departed, NEOM said on Tuesday without giving a reason.

Saudi Arabia's ambitious futuristic city plans have been bogged down by delays and changes. The most recent is the departure of its CEO, Nadhmi al-Nasr.

Following the departure of Nadhmi al-Nasr who had served as the project’s chief executive since 2018, Aiman al-Mudaifer has been appointed as interim CEO, says NEOM in a statement.

Saudi Arabia replaced the executive that was overseeing its plan to build the $1.5 trillion futuristic development known as Neom, in the latest sign that the project is struggling to deliver on its ambitions.

Saudi Arabia announced Tuesday that it was replacing the chief executive of its futuristic mega-city NEOM as scepticism mounts over the Gulf kingdom's most ambitious development projects. There has been mounting scepticism over signature projects such as NEOM,