Work on 1km-tall Jeddah Tower construction to restart

Construction on the 1km-tall Jeddah Tower has stalled but there are plans for a 2km-tall tower in Saudi Arabia (Image: Adobe Stock)

Work to build the world’s tallest tower, the 1km-high Jeddah Tower in Saudi Arabia is set to restart, according to reports.

Construction on the tower, overseen by local contractor Saudi Binladen Group, started in 2015 and saw the construction of a huge 5m-thick concrete slab, sitting on top of 270 piles to support the massive tower.

By 2017, the tower reached 63 storeys but work came to a halt after two major backers of the project – Prince Alwaleed and Bakr Bin Laden – were arrested during a purge ordered by new crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammad bin Salman.

But a source close to the project told Middle East business intelligence publication MEED that the project is finally “back in full motion”.

A total of 14 contractors have been invited to bid to complete the tower, with a deadline for tenders of the end of this year.

The contractors are:

• Almabani
• Bawani
• China Harbour
• China State Construction Engineering Corporation
• Consolidated Contractors Company
• El-Seif Engineering Contracting
• Hyundai Engineering Construction
• Mohammed Abdulmohsin al-Kharafi & Sons
• Nesma & Partners
• Powerchina
• Samsung C+T
• Saudi Freyssinet
• Skanska
• Strabag

If built, the Jeddah Tower would exceed the height of the current world’s tallest building the Burj Khalifa in Dubai by more than 170 metres.