No overtaking Burj Khalifa till at least 2017

Burj Khalifa, the 2,717-ft high  tower, will continue to hold the title for the tallest building in the world, at least, till 2017.

Quoting Kingdom Holding Company (KHC) Chairman Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, Saudi newspapers have reported that the 1,000-metre high tall Kingdom Tower in Jeddah will be completed by mid-2017.

An Azerbaijan company, however, has revealed plans to build the tallest tower in the world, standing at 1,050 metres, which will be surrounded by number of artificial islands and a Formula One race track. 

The project is likely to be completed between 2020 and 2025.

Click here to see: Tallest buildings in the world

The Kingdom Tower is the centerpiece of the Kingdom City Jeddah — new urban development of more than 5.3 million sqmt of land in the north of Jeddah, overlooking the Red Sea and Obhur Creek.

And in order to achieve its target, the Jeddah Economic Company (JEC), on April 15, announced a capital increase from SR7.3 billion to SR8.8 billion for the mega project which includes the 1,000-metre high Kingdom Tower.

KHC Chairman Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, the driving force behind the decision to build the tower, announced an investment of SR1.5 billion from the Saudi Binladin Group (SBG) for a 16.63 per cent stake in Jeddah Economic Company, owner of the SR75-billion ($20 billion) Jeddah mega project, Arab News reported.

The contract for construction of the tower was signed with SBG for SR4.6 billion ($1.2 billion).

With a total construction area of over 500,000 square meters, the Kingdom Tower will be a mixed-use building, featuring a Four Seasons Hotel, Four Seasons serviced apartments, office space, luxury condominiums and an observatory at higher level than the world's current highest observation deck.

Burj Khalifa’s At the Top is currently the world’s highest observatory deck, with an outdoor terrace on level 124.

The tower, has 900 studio, one, two, three and four bedroom, while the Armani Residences has 144 fully furnished private apartments.

It offers luxurious recreational and leisure facilities including four swimming pools, an exclusive residents’ lounge; health and wellness facilities; At.mosphere, the world’s highest fine dining restaurant at level 122.

Dubai is also home to three tallest residential towers in the world . 

The 414-metre Princess Tower, the 395-metre 23 Marina and the 381-metre Elite Residence. 

Risk factor

Building a skyscraper may not augur well in economic terms if Barclays Capitals  Skyscraper Index report is to be believed.

The report has found an “unhealthy correlation” between the building of skyscrapers and impending financial crashes as “remarkably accurate”.

In January, Andrew Lawrence Director, Property Research, Asia Ex-Japan Equities, Barclays Capital, told Emirates 24|7 that the index had not taken into account the Kingdom Tower as it only includes under construction towers, but on completion it will raise a concern over the country’s economic outlook 2016/17. 

China and India

China is set to complete 53 per cent of the 124 skyscrapers under construction over the next six years.

The country now has 75 completed skyscrapers above 240 metres in height.

India has only two of the world’s 276 skyscrapers over 240 metres in height and over the next five years it intends to complete 14 new skyscrapers, Barclays report said.

Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.