Saudi Arabia Building World's Tallest Tower

While the Burj Khalifa in Dubai currently holds the title of world's tallest building, a new "megatall" skyscraper currently under construction in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia will claim the title by reaching over 3,200 feet in height. With a planned completion date of 2018, the $1.5 billion Jeddah Tower is being privately funded by Jeddah Economic Company, which secured funding for the project in Q4 last year. The creator and leader of the project is Saudi Arabian Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal, chairman of Kingdom Holding Company (KHC); KHC is a partner in Jeddah Economic Company (JEC), which was formed in 2009 for the development of Jeddah Tower and City.

At the moment, only three buildings qualify as megatalls, according to Popular Science: Dubai's 2,717-foot (828-meter) Burj Khalifa (completed in 2010), the 2,073-foot (632-meter) Shanghai Tower (completed in 2015), and Mecca's 1,972-foot (601-meter) Makkah Royal Clock Tower (completed in 2012). But that number is expected to more than double by 2020, as four more join the list: Shenzhen's Ping An Finance Centre, Wuhan's Greenland Center, Jakarta's Signature Tower, and the new Jeddah Tower.

"With this deal, we will reach new, as yet unheard-of highs in real estate development, and will fulfill the company's objective of creating a world-class urban center that offers an advanced lifestyle, so that Jeddah may have a new iconic landmark that attracts people from all walks of society with comprehensive services and a multitude of uses," said Mounib Hammoud, chief executive officer of JEC.

Initially known as Kingdom Tower, the Jeddah Tower was designed by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture and will be the centerpiece and first construction phase of the $20 billion Kingdom City development in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, near the Red Sea. Jeddah Tower will be a mixed-use building featuring a luxury hotel, office space, serviced apartments, luxury condominiums and the world's highest observatory. While the tower's final height remains a closely guarded secret, Jeddah Tower's height will be at least 173 meters (568 feet) taller than Burj Khalifa, which was designed by Adrian Smith while at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill.

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Kingdom Holding Moves Forward with World's Tallest Building, Kingdom Tower

Kingdom Holding Company, the investment firm led by billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, announced this week that it has signed a 4.2 billion riyal ($1.23 billion) deal a deal to build the Kingdom Tower in Jeddah, selecting Saudi Binladen Group to build the structure according to a Daily Mail article. Kingdom Tower, expected to stand at least 3,280 feet tall (the exact final height is still a closely guarded secret), will loom larger than Dubai's Burj Khalifa making it the world's tallest building upon completion. Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, designed the 5.7 million square foot building; Adrian Smith, previously of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, also designed the Burj Khalifa.

Smith told the Huffington Post of the project that "there's something very special about being the world's tallest building. Everyone wants to be able to do one. I think in this situation there is a development going around the tower -- a $29 billion development -- and this tower acts as a catalyst for that development. Putting such a tall tower in first actually increases the land value around the tower, so even if you don't make a lot of money on the tower itself you'll make money on the land."

"Building this tower in Jeddah sends a financial and economic message that should not be ignored," Prince Alwaleed told reporters. "It has a political depth to it to tell the world that we Saudis invest in our country despite what is happening around us from events, turmoil and revolutions even."

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