Jeddah Tower: Construction resumes on what will be world’s tallest building

Construction has continued for the world’s tallest building after the project was delayed for a few years. 

Jeddah Tower, formerly known as Kingdom Tower, will be 3,280 feet and will be the heart and first construction phase of a $20 billion Kingdom City development in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, near the Red Sea. 

The $1.2 billion tower is being designed by Adrian Smith and Gordon Gill of Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture and features a mixed-use building with a luxury hotel, office space, apartments, and luxury condominiums.

Image of a rendering of Jeddah Tower shows what the massive structure will look like when it’s complete. (Photo courtesy of Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture)

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This tower will also be 568 feet taller than Burj Khalifa, an immense skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, currently the tallest in the world, according to the architecture firm Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture. 

The slender, massive tower will also feature a sky terrace opening to the public once it’s complete, and it will be considered the world’s largest observatory.

Given the structure’s height, Jeddah Tower will contain 59 elevators, including 54 single-deck and five double-deck elevators, complemented by 12 escalators. 

Image of a rendering of Jeddah Tower shows what the massive structure will look like when it’s complete. (Photo courtesy of Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture)

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Development of the Jeddah Tower began in 2013 but was postponed in 2018. Architectural Digest noted that the contractor, the Binladin Group, was removed from the project after Saudi Arabian President Bakr bin Laden, the half-brother to Osama Bin Laden, was arrested, and the COVID-19 pandemic also caused more setbacks. 

The structure will be completed within the next four to five years.

This story was reported from Washington, D.C.