Valode & Pistre is set to break ground on Africa’s tallest tower next June. More than doubling the height of Johannesburg’s 223-meter Carlton Center, which has been the continent’s tallest building since 1973, the Al Noor Tower (Tower of Light) will most likely rise 540-meters on a 25-hectare site in the Moroccan city of Casablanca.
It’s program will center around business, providing accommodations with a 200-suite luxury hotel, a trading platform, conference hall and large art gallery, as well as an astonishing 100-meter-tall atrium that hollows the tower’s base.
Symbolic in nature, Al Noor Tower’s facade is designed as a pixilated representation of Africa’s 1000 languages, while its 114-floors reflect the amount of chapters found in the Quran.
"The design of Al Noor Tower is elegant and gives the feeling of a wedding dress," states the project's website. "From the side the tower look like a fountain pen which is the tool that Sheikh Tarek is using to design the future. The height of the tower is 540-meters to remind us that Africa has 54 countries. Everyone in Africa will feel part of that tower."
Al Noor is part of a larger project spearheaded by Dubai-based Middle East Development. It is expected to cost $1 billion and be completed in 2018.
