Dive Brief:
- It's time for a new upstart to snatch the title of world's tallest building – Saudi Arabia is set to begin construction this week on the kilometer-high Kingdom Tower near Jeddah.
- Assuming all goes as planned, the tower will reach 3,280 feet and beat out the Burj Khalifa in Dubai by 568 feet.
- The Saudi government puts the current cost estimate at $1.23 billion for a five-year effort to shape 80,000 tons of steel and 17.7 million cubic feet of concrete into 200 floors with 5.7 million square feet.
Dive Insight:
The Saudis say 160 of the 200 floors will be habitable and will be reached by 59 elevators. The Saudi Bin Laden Group will be the builder. The tower is part of a larger project to create Kingdom City.