Tallest buildings of the future

In previous articles, we’ve talked about the tallest buildings of the past; those that no longer exist. This week, we are going to have a look at the tallest buildings that don’t quite exist yet. There are plenty of plans and projects for future buildings which will overtake the world’s tallest buildings in terms of height, and today we will be hearing all about them.

Jeddah Tower
Jeddah Tower is a Saudi Arabian construction project which will stand at 1000 metres tall when finished. It is estimated to reach completion in 2022, and is intended to house homes, hotels, and offices. With upwards of 200 floors, Jeddah Tower is just the first part of an economic project aimed to provide the nearby city of Jeddah with massive business and financial boosts, ultimately creating a city rich enough to rival Dubai by 2030. The tower itself was intended to stand much taller, the architect’s original goal being 1 mile tall, but the local landscape is geographically unable to support a building of this size and so his plans were scaled down. When complete, it will stand 72 metres taller than the Burj Khalifa, the world’s current tallest building. 

Grand Rama 9 Tower
Named for the previous king of Thailand (King Bhumibol the Great, alternatively known as Rama IX), the Grand Rama 9 Tower will become Southeast Asia’s tallest building upon its completion in 2021. The tower will rise to 2018ft in an ill-fated attempt to match its height to its year of completion. When it is finally built it will serve as a business centre and include a number of hotels for international businessmen and tourists to stay in.

Wuhan Greenland Centre
One of numerous Chinese supertall construction projects, the Wuhan Greenland Centre is a skyscraper built on a tripod base, designed by the same architectural firm behind the Jeddah Tower. There will be no barrier for a flat roof on the Wuhan Greenland Centre, as it will be topped with a dome of curved glass. The tip of this dome will stand at 636 metres, which won’t make it the tallest building in the world, but with 126 floors above ground, it will still be the third tallest tower in China. In imperial measurements, this will convert to 2001ft, which will make it taller than the Grand Rama 9 Tower. It’s guessed that the Wuhan Greenland Centre will be the fifth tallest building in the world when built, depending on the speed of other construction projects.

Sky Mile Tower
The Sky Mile Tower is a proposal for a 1600m tall tower in Japan. The tower would be built on reclaimed land in Tokyo Bay. Neither the tower nor the land it will be built on exist yet – the proposal is part of a development initiative called Next Tokyo 2045, which aims to build a futuristic city safeguarded against climate change. That’s why the tower is close to a mile high (it’s only 9 metres shorter). Also in the project would be massive increases in public transportation and the development of hexagonal algae farms in the city bay. The tower is estimated to house about 55,000 people and shall be financed by the value of newly built waterfront properties in the city. The Sky Mile Tower is a long way off though, as it is set to finish construction in 2045 – that is, if the proposal is ever approved at all…