First announced in February 2016, Dubai Creek Tower was to be constructed ahead of the city’s
2020 World Expo - becoming the centrepiece of a new development at the historic Dubai Creek.
Rumoured to stand more than 1,300 metres high, the tower would dwarf the nearby Burj Khalifa
and become the tallest manmade structure ever built; a showcase of everything the Middle
East could achieve, just like the Eiffel Tower at the 1889 World’s Fair.
But despite work starting on its foundations four years ago, construction quickly stalled
and the project has faced rumours of postponement and even cancellation.
So what actually happened to Dubai Creek Tower and what are the chances of this incredibly
ambitious structure ever becoming reality?
Dubai Creek Tower was expected to cost a billion US dollars - but for a project with such a
high price tag, it wasn’t set to deliver much in terms of usable space.
Despite its immense height, the structure would have just 20 floors; housing observation
decks, restaurants and a hotel.
But floor area wasn’t in the brief for Dubai Creek Tower, and the scheme actually had two
much more significant objectives to achieve.
The first was to create another jaw dropping attraction for the city, and the second
was to keep the title of “world’s tallest structure” firmly in Dubai.
In 2013, Saudi Arabia began to construct the Jeddah Tower; the first skyscraper to stand
a kilometre tall.
If completed, that project would have taken the title of world’s tallest building away
from Dubai’s 828-metre Burj Khalifa.
While it may seem like a lot of effort to build
such an enormous structure just to retain a title, having the world’s tallest building
in your country can actually be a strategic economic boon.
Dubai’s Burj Khalifa is an internationally recognised icon that has long been credited
for putting the city on the map. It’s also helped to bring nearly 20 million visitors
and the USD$30 billion they spend to the city each year.
In a country keen to move away from an oil-based economy, diversifying with tourism has proved
a successful strategy.
Dubai Creek Tower became a sort of insurance policy; a way for Dubai to retain its coveted
title without having to build an entire skyscraper. This becomes even more apparent when you consider
that the actual height of the tower has never been revealed - all we know is it’ll be
between 1,000 and 1,350 metres high.
Work on Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah Tower came to a halt in January 2018 when its primary
funding backers were caught-up in the country’s anti-corruption purges - and is yet to resume.
Around the same time, work also stopped at Dubai Creek Tower - when just its foundations
had been completed.
Though no construction has taken place since late 2018, the tower was only formally put
on-hold in 2020 as Dubai went into lockdown.
Recent years have also seen Dubai’s property market waver - and ongoing fallout from
the 2008 Global Financial Crisis and a drop in the price of oil have left the city with
an oversupply of homes and offices.
The added impact of the pandemic and the subsequent global economic downturn may ultimately prove
too much for the tower to proceed.
Despite the context, Emaar Properties insists the tower will be completed in 2022 - and
this could be possible, as the structure is relatively simple to construct.
Until then, plans for Dubai Creek Tower sit waiting, ready in case any city challenges
Dubai for the title of world’s tallest structure.