The builder of The Shard skyscraper in London is to project manage the building of the 1,000m high Kingdom Tower in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia – the tallest building in the world.
Mace, the UK consultancy and construction company, will manage the development in a joint venture with building consultant EC Harris, part of Dutch group Arcadis. The skyscraper will be built by the Saudi construction company Bin Laden Group.
The tower’s height is planned at three times the height of the Shard (at 308 metres), and will take over from Dubai’s 828-metre Burj Khalifa as the world’s tallest skyscraper. It will include a hotel, serviced apartments and luxury condominiums.
Plans were unveiled 18 months ago by Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal as the centrepiece to the Kingdom City development in Jeddah, a major Red Sea port.
Saudi Arabia is undertaking multibillion-pound projects to improve its infrastructure and meet its growing housing needs, spending more than £263bn in the five years to 2013.
Construction should start this summer, taking just over five years.