World’s Most Expensive Office Towers Over Hong Kong

The newest addition to Hong Kong‘s world famous skyline has opened its doors, with its owners hoping to now reap the rewards of investing in the world’s most expensive plot of land.

Standing at 190-metres tall, The Henderson is situated in the heart of Hong Kong’s financial district. While its construction battled both high costs and a vicious typhoon, the 36-storey high-rise has begun welcoming the affluent to open up shop inside its glass walls.

“We are delighted to welcome the first batch of tenants into The Henderson upon the opening of our flagship project,” said Martin Lee Ka-shing, chairman of Henderson Land Development. “Embodying world-class architectural craftsmanship, the project enriches the urban landscape of Central and Hong Kong.”

The land on which The Henderson is built was purchased in May 2017 by the eponymous Henderson Land Development, one of Hong Kong’s “big four” developers.

Henderson Land paid $3 billion for the 50 by 60 meter plot – working out at around a million dollars per square meter– which at the time was a multi-story car park. This made the relatively small parcel of land in Hong Kong’s Central Business District the most expensive plot ever sold.

The Henderson faces Victoria Harbor, and its proximity to more “traditional” neighboring skyscrapers – the Bank of China Tower and the International Finance Centre – put the structure’s unique design into sharp relief.

Sporting a tiered, curving exterior and clad in 4,000 panels of shaped reflective glass, the building was designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, The studio of the late British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid known its svelte and uber-modern constructions.

Zaha Hadid’s other projects include Rome’s Maxxi Museum of 21st Century Art, Miami’s One Thousand Museum high-rise, and the Heydar Aliyev Center in Baku, Azerbaijan.

According to Henderson Land Development, the design “echoes the organic beauty of the natural world,” and is inspired by the forms of a budding Bauhinia flower, the orchid which features on the flag of Hong Kong.

However, given its unique shape, the building had to be able to withstand the extreme weather to which Hong Kong is prone.

2018’s Mangkhut super typhoon caused billions in property damage and many of Hong Kong’s skyscrapers had their windows blown out, all while The Henderson was undergoing construction.

According to its developers, construction required sourcing “bespoke four-ply double-curved, resilient architectural glass” from Germany to mitigate such effects.

While construction went past the scheduled 2023 completion date, doors have now opened to those able to shell out for the luxury office suites.

Hong Kong has long been attractive location for businesses to set up shop -lured by the country’s investment-friendly policies, relatively low corporate tax rate of 16.5%, and easy access to the China and the Asian market – and currently ranks third in the World Bank‘s ‘Ease of Doing Business” index.

The Henderson is no different, and major companies including investment firm Coller Capital, luxury auctioneer Christie’s, and Swiss watchmaker Audemars Piguet are among its first tenants.

However, letting the costly blocks in the futuristic tower proved a tall task for Henderson Land Development, with only 50% of the building’s capacity taken up as of November, according to Nikkei Asia.

Newsweek has contacted Henderson Land to ask how much of the building is currently occupied.

This evidenced an ongoing slump in Hong Kong’s property market, with work-from-home possibilities and slow post-Covid recovery taking its toll on demand for office spaces.

However, its developers appear confident, with Henderson Land’s chairman, upon the opening of the building to its first tenants, saying: “The Henderson has not only set a new benchmark for future Grade-A smart offices but also reaffirmed the group’s confidence in the development of Hong Kong.”

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