by Brianna Crandall — October 22, 2012—Bouygues Bâtiment Ile-de-France, a subsidiary of Bouygues Construction, has signed a contract worth €77 million with the Allianz group for the renovation of the Athena Tower (Tour Athéna), located in the La Défense business district of Paris.
Constructed in 1984, the building will be totally refurbished to meet the most stringent environmental standards, says Bouygues Construction. The company is aiming for triple certification: HQE (Paris-based Haute Qualité Environnementale or High Quality Environmental); BREEAM Very Good (U.K.-based BRE Environmental Assessment Method); and LEED Gold (U.S.-based Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design); it is also expected to qualify for the French BBC Rénovation (bâtiment basse consummation) low energy-consumption label.
The project entails erecting a new façade, extending the entrance hall, redesigning interior spaces, and creating a 275-seat auditorium. The building will retain its original shape, but it will now be fitted with photovoltaic panels. Its energy consumption will be reduced by at least 40 percent, says the company.
Renovation work has already begun on the 100 meter-tall building, which has 25 floors and 38,000 sq m of floor area. Some 300 people will be working onsite at peak periods. The work will last two years, with completion scheduled for July 2014. When fully renovated, the building will provide working space for roughly 2,000 people.
Bouygues Construction built many of the office towers at La Défense (including the Exaltis Tower, Opus 12, Cœur Défense, the Total Tower, the Areva Tower, the Vista Tower and the GDF Suez Tower). The Group also fully refurbished the First Tower, the tallest building in France, in compliance with HQE standards. Current Bouygues Construction projects around the world include a number of very tall buildings, particularly in Asia (the Trade and Industry Tower in Hong Kong, residential towers in Thailand) and the Middle East (the QP District development in Qatar).
