Burj Dubai tower soars to 75 floors

Developers of the Burj Dubai are making rapid progress in their bid to create the world's tallest skyscraper.

Builders have reached the 75-storey mark and a new level is being added every three days, reports say.

The tower, in the United Arab Emirates, is due to be completed in 2008.

Details of its final height remain secret but conservative estimates say it will reach just over 700m.

That would make it 200m taller than the present skyscraper title holder, Taipei 101, and over twice the height of Auckland's Sky Tower, which stands at 328m.

Details released by a subcontractor working on the project suggest the Burj Dubai could even top 800m. It is being built by Emaar Properties for about US$1 billion ($1.5 billion).

It has been designed as the centre of a large-scale, mixed-use development that will include 30,000 homes, nine hotels, 2.4 hectares of parkland, 19 residential towers, and a 12-hectare lake.

The complete district is expected to cost up to US$20 billion. Emaar will also spend US$27.2m to have a Metro rail station built nearby, the Gulf News said.

The Burj Dubai is expected to have around 162 floors, with the initial 37 levels occupied by the world's first Armani Hotel.

Over 3000 workers are on-site and more than 200,000cu m of high-quality concrete and 38,000 tonnes of steel have been used so far.

Construction began in April last year.

Designed by Chicago-based Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), Burj Dubai is based on the shape of a desert flower native to the region.

It is being constructed by South Korea's high-rise construction experts Samsung Corporation and managed by Turner Construction International.

- AGENCIES