by Shane Henson — October 15, 2012—Arabtec Construction LLC has secured a contract and begun work on Gazprom Tower (or Okhta Center) in Saint Petersburg, Russia, which will be the headquarters of Gazprom and Gazpromneft. Once completed, it will be Europe’s tallest office building at 85 stories (462.5 meters), says the United Arab Emirates-based Arabtec, which was involved in the construction of the world’s current tallest building, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.
The tower, the first supertall skyscraper in Saint Petersburg, is part of a mixed-use nonresidential public and cultural project including the largest museum of modern art in Russia, a museum of archeology, a transformable theater and concert hall, a stadium, a swimming pool, a sports complex, landscaped park areas, cafes and restaurants.
Per the contract, Arabtec Construction will be responsible for the enabling works to make the tower building site construction-ready, including such activities as site preparation, creation of access routes, and any necessary security fencing, ramps and signage. The enabling works package is worth 95 million (£76 million).
The second phase of the project, which will be awarded after the tower contract, will comprise two podium buildings, a concourse, underground parking and support facilities. Construction on the whole project is expected to take about five years, ending in 2018.
A leading construction company in the United Arab Emirates, since its launch in 1975, Arabtec Construction has executed a diverse and far-reaching portfolio of major construction projects in all sectors of real estate and infrastructure. Today, Arabtec Construction encompasses an array of plant and state-of-the-art equipment as well as a multinational team of more than 40,000 staff, the company says.
