Scotland-based practice Kettle Collective has announced that it is designing the world’s second tallest building, Lakhta Centre II in St Petersburg, Russia. At 703m, it will be slightly under the iconic Burj Khalifa (828m) in Dubai, UAE. However, the new Lakhta Centre II, will boast the highest occupied floor and viewing gallery of any building in the world. It will be taller than the Shanghai Tower(632m), which is currently the second tallest structure and will dwarf the UK’s Shard (310m), at more than double its height.
The tower will be located on the outskirts of St Petersburg and will stand alongside Europe’s tallest building, the Lakhta Center (462m), which is the headquarters for energy giant Gazprom.
Design lead, Tony Kettle, founder and principal architect of Kettle Collective, had designed the predecessor Lakhta Centre when he worked at global architectural firm RMJM after creating the winning design in an international competition for the Gazprom tower in 2006. Currently, the Edinburgh-headquartered firm also has offices in Dubai and Russia.
The tower will house pioneering multi-car lifts, powered by regenerating energy from the movement of the lift and is seen as a complimentary development to the first Lakhta Center. The build will include requirements universally recognised as essential for the office of the future – accommodation and relaxation spaces fulfilling the ‘live, work, and play’ needed in a modern business centre.
“The new Lakhta Center will be a template of sustainable design for global high-rise projects,” shares Mr Kettle. “It will have the best-in-class low-energy design and a mix of uses that will create a vertical atrium space with a vibrant centre as the heart for this new business district. The design is both aesthetic and functional as it will reduce considerable wind forces that will impact the structure, in turn reducing the size of structural elements required within the building.”
“The tower is born out of a daring idea that has been inspired by energy in all of its forms, from helical waves generated around deep space quasars to the spirals of wave energy. The outer layer of the building is created from spiralling columns that form an open organic helical diagrid, while the structure is carved out by a series of spiral atriums shared with green vertical spaces.”
Tony Kettle, Founder, Kettle Collective
“Given its prominence and celebration of energy and sustainability, this project will be more than a city landmark, it will have national significance showcasing Russia on the world stage, as an investor in business, innovation and creative thinking,” says Kettle’s managing director, Colin Bone.
“This is a hugely significant partnership for our studio and has come at a time of considerable global challenge, not just for Kettle Collective but for our industry as we navigate the impact of the pandemic. It highlights our extensive experience in the design of new buildings and communities across the world that are not only truly sustainable, but that celebrate the place.”
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