Construction on what will be the world’s tallest skyscraper is rapidly approaching a major milestone. Saudi Arabia’s JEC Tower is racing towards 100 floors, making it a step closer to achieving its projected 2028 completion date.
Back in November of last year, we reported on the JEC Tower reaching 69 floors. Engineering firm Thornton Tomasetti confirmed in late December that the building has surpassed 80 floors and, according to unconfirmed reports by locals, it has already hit 84 floors. If construction continues at this rapid pace, it should hit 100 floors in the coming weeks, joining the roughly 25 or so buildings worldwide to reach that mark.
However, it still has a way to go. Architects Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill (AS+GG), recently said that the building will consist of at least 157 floors and will exceed a height of 1 km (0.62 miles) in the Saudi port city of Jeddah, though the ultimate exact height hasn’t yet been disclosed. This will make it a lot taller than the current world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa and almost twice the height of the USA’s tallest skyscraper, the One World Trade Center.
Its interior will boast the world’s highest observation point, as well as a luxury hotel, office space, and palatial apartments. Two-story elevators will zoom people around at speeds of 10 m (30 ft) per second, which sounds like it’s approaching thrill ride territory, but the Shanghai Tower’s elevators are actually around double that speed.
Jeddah Economic Company
Previously known as both the Kingdom Tower and Jeddah Tower, the JEC Tower will anchor a new urban development. The project is led by Saudi Prince Al Waleed bin Talal Al Saud and has been ongoing for well over a decade. However, work stalled at the 60th floor and was paused for a few years, with multiple reports naming purges by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as the cause for the delay. Check out our gallery for the latest construction image.
The megatall skyscraper is just one of several so-called “gigaprojects” currently underway in the oil-rich desert kingdom as it aims to transform into a major tourism destination, alongside the Line and Mukaab.
Sources: AS+GG, Thornton Tomasetti
