Saudi Arabia may be weighing in on plans for a 2-kilometer-tall, world’s tallest tower, for its 18-square-kilometer master-planned area in the capital city of Riyadh. 

The proposed skyscraper will be more than twice as tall as Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, which stands at 828 meters and is currently the tallest building in the world, according to a report published by Middle East business intelligence (MEED) magazine on Wednesday. 

“Contractors that have priced megatall towers in the region say that depending on the final design, a 2km-tall structure could cost about $5bn to construct,” said the report.

“A design competition with a participation fee of $1m is underway for the record-breaking tower,” as per MEED’s sources. 

As per the sources, roughly eight companies have been asked to compete. 

Some of the top architectural companies in the world are collaborating, and they were chosen for the project based on their previous work on iconic structures and megatall towers around the globe.

US-based companies Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), Adrian Smith & Gordon Gill Architecture, Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF), and Gensler are among the probable participants. 

France’s Egis and Dubai-based Killa Design are also competing for the bid. 

The projected tall tower in Riyadh is just one of many influential projects slated for the city’s northern peripheries, west of the existing King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh. 

The feasibility assessment for the development was carried out by EY, a global consultant, which falls under the masterplan of the Kingdom, stated the report. 

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