The Saudi Kingdom has commissioned a tower twice as tall as the Burj Khalifa.
Not long after we lauded the progress in their construction industry, Saudi Arabia has dashed our green expectations with the announcement that they will build a one-mile-high tower. To put that into perspective, the “Kingdom Tower” (hello Babylon) will be twice as tall as the Burj Khalifa – the world’s tallest tower.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0yDAMt6_3c&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
Slated to be built in Jeddah along the Red Sea, the $30 billion tower designed by Adrian Smith from Adrian Smith and Gordon Gill Architecture will have 12 million cubic square feet of interior space and will be constructed by Emaar developers – the same consortium responsible for much of the United Arab Emirates development projects. It will take 12 full minutes to travel from the ground floor to the top of the tower in the building’s elevator. (That’s a lot of stairs when the electricity goes out!)
:: Inhabitat
More on crazy construction projects in the Middle East:
Israel Considers Building An Artificial Island Off the Coast of Gaza
Dubai Inaugurates World’s Tallest Building
More Signs of Dubai’s Foul Ecology At Jumeirah Islands
Author: Tafline Laylin
As a tour leader who led “eco-friendly” camping trips throughout North America, Tafline soon realized that she was instead leaving behind a trail of gas fumes, plastic bottles and Pringles. In fact, wherever she traveled – whether it was Viet Nam or South Africa or England – it became clear how inefficiently the mandate to re-think our consumer culture is reaching the general public. Born in Iran, raised in South Africa and the United States, she currently splits her time between Africa and the Middle East. Tafline can be reached at tafline (at) greenprophet (dot) com.
Dear Green Prophet,
I read with interest Tafline Layin’s report on Kingdom Tower.
Please note that all reports about Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture’s involvement with Kingdom Tower (which has not been announced) are based on anonymous, unofficial sources. We do not confirm the reports.
I should note that several of the recent reports, including yours, are using videos and/or renderings that are NOT the work of AS+GG.
Also I can say definitely that we are NOT working on a mile-high tower design.
Best,
Kevin
Kevin Nance
Director of Public Affairs
Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture
Thanks for letting us know Kevin.
I hope the put climbing walls in there!