Contest for tallest tower in the Gulf heats up

Dubai: Competition to build the world's tallest tower is hotting up in the Gulf as developers continue to battle it out with their increasingly ambitious designs and dizzying heights.

A report by Middle East Economic Digest (MEED) last week had said Nakheel was planning to increase the height of its Al Burj project to 1.4 kilometres, making it almost double the height of Emaar's Burj Dubai, which is said to be around 750 to 815 metres long. However, Nakheel has denied the report. A spokesperson for Nakheel said yesterday that the design of the project was still being finalised, but height won't necessarily be the focus of the tower.

"Although the project will be a significant architectural structure, it's worth noting that an iconic building doesn't necessarily have to be the tallest. For example, Sydney Opera House is an iconic building admired around the world and its worldwide appeal is not based on height," the spokesperson said. The Al Burj project had originally been planned at Dubai waterfront with an initial height of 1,050 metres. The project will now come up near Ibn Battuta Mall, a source told Gulf News.

Mall development

According to the MEED report, Ibn Battuta is increasing its retail space to 250,000 square metres, with entertainment attractions, including a roller coaster on top of the mall itself. Nakheel said further details on the tower are expected to be released by the end of this year. Meanwhile, there are rumours that the proposed Saudi Arabian mile-high tower will fall short of the hyped mile.

According to sources, the tower could reach 5,250 feet, four times the size of the Empire State Building in New York, with a development value of £5 billion. Unless you suffer from vertigo and if you can take the heady heights, from the top of the tower you'll be rewarded with an unparalleled view of the Middle East, North Africa and the Indian Ocean.

The project is being overseen by Saudi Prince Al Walid Bin Talal Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, under his company, Kingdom Holdings, in a joint venture with London firms Hyder Consulting and Arup. Graham Whitehead, head of corporate communications at Hyder Consulting headquarters in London, told Gulf News that a confidentiality agreement had been signed between the parties involved and hence no details could be released. Although the height and design specifications can't be released until Kingdom Holdings gives permission, a spokesperson for Hyder Consulting in Dubai said: "They are aiming for the tallest building in the world."

Al Burj vs Burj Dubai vs Sears Tower vs Chicago spire

Here is some comparisons of Al Burj vs Burj Dubai vs Sears Tower vs Chicago spire.

Nakheel increases height of Tall Tower to 1.4 kilometres

Tallest skyscraper in the world will be the centrepiece of Ibn Battuta Mall.

Local developer Nakheel is finalising plans for the world's tallest tower in Dubai. The scheme involves constructing a 1.4 kilometre-tall tower next to the Ibn Battuta Mall in the Jebel Ali area.The Tall Tower project had involved plans for a 1,050 metre-tall building, but it is understood these designs have now been revised upwards to make it the tallest skyscraper in the world. At 1.4km it is almost double the height of Emaar's Burj Dubai, which is expected to reach about 815 metres, and several hundred metres taller than rival towers in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. A spokesman for Nakheel confirms designs for the tower are being finalised and says a launch is expected this year.

Earlier designs for the project showed a building with 228 floors, a four-level basement and one service sub-level – a total built-up area of 1.49 million square metres with 492,000 sq m of useable space. The tower will house offices, apartments and hotels. In the original 1,050 metre design, the highest habitable floor was at 850 metres, topped by a 200-metre central spire with a three-level function area and three service floors (MEED 10:8:08).

Nakheel's tower will be the focal point of its plans for the Ibn Battuta Mall development next to Jumeirah islands and Jumeirah Lake Towers. The Tall Tower will be flanked by about 20 smaller towers of up to 90 storeys that will be next to the revamped shopping mall. Work has started on changing the layout of the mall ahead of the proposed expansion, which will double its existing retail area to 250,000 sq m by building retail space over existing parking areas between the mall and the metro. The expansion will also include entertainment attractions and a roller-coaster on top of the mall.

The Tall Tower was originally called the Pinnacle and destined for Palm Jumeirah, before becoming part of the Dubai Waterfront scheme when it was renamed Al-Burj. The consultancy team for the tower includes UK-based WSP, US-based Leslie E Robertson Associates and Australia's Woods Bagot. The project is just one of several skyscraper projects under development in the Gulf that could claim the title of the world's tallest building. Saudi-based Kingdom Holding had planned to build a tower in Jeddah that was expected to be one mile high (1,609 metres). However, these plans are understood to have been scaled back and the final height of the building could be about 1,100 metres.

Like Nakheel's Tall Tower and the Burj Dubai, the tower will form part of a wider 5.4 sq km real estate project planned by Kingdom Holding. Another masterplanned community anchored by a tall tower is Kuwait's City of Silk. The Burj Mubarak is expected to be 1,001 metres tall. In Bahrain, Danish architect Henning Larsens Tegnestue (HLT) has completed design work for a 1,022 metre-tall tower. If all these projects go ahead, and no other 1,000 metre-plus towers are built in other regions, the Gulf will be home to the five tallest buildings in the world.

Al Burj construction photos map and plot sign

This is the Map View and the red spots are where the pics were taken from.



his is from area 1 with the red square around it, looks like the 'Tall Tower' site office.



This is a panoramic from the spot with the 5 spokes coming out of it.



This is the equipment on the 'Tall Tower' site, which the guards were so nice enough to confirm.







These two images are of the plot signs.

Engineering the worlds tallest towers

Engineering the worlds tallest towers, click on image for full size!