Here is AD with The 5 most expensive buildings in the Middle East and the MENA region.
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Since the beginning of civilization, buildings have served as humanity’s stamp on time. From Neanderthal caves and exquisite hammams, to the boundary-pushing buildings in the Middle East, architectural innovations capture the zeitgeist; embodying the hopes and ambitions of the moment as well as the underlying technological prowess that points to the future of our built environment.
Backed by a searing ambition to fashion a new image for the region (and in many cases, funded by the deep pockets of sovereign funds), buildings in the Middle East have, in the past 15 years, achieved the impossible: They have quite simply raised the bar for architectural and structural innovation around the world. The journey hasn’t been without criticism: design purists have nicknamed region an architect’s Disneyland and eyebrows have been raised about the Middle East ‘buying’ design cred. And whilst that is true to a certain extent, it is also offering designers from around the world the infrastructure – and the funding – to imagine future icons.
Also read: Inside Ronaldo’s uber-luxury suite in Riyadh that costs INR 2 crore per month
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Photo: Fraser Hall / Getty Images1/5Burj Khalifa, Dubai, UAE, $1.5 billion
An elegant and slender beacon of Dubai’s dynamic vision and future-forward thinking, the Burj Khalifa rises 828 meters above sea level. The crown jewel of the emirate’s luxurious downtown development, it opened 2010 and has since held the record for the world’s tallest building. Designed by a team led by Adrian Smith of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, it derives its unusual, multi-layered profile from the Hymenocallis flower Or Spider Lily – a regional desert flower. Its shimmering glass façade reflects the city’s vibrant energy. Inside, it offers an unparalleled urban lifestyle, featuring luxury apartments, observation decks, and world-class amenities.
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Photo: Koert Vermeulen and Noor Riyadh2/5Kingdom Centre Tower, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, $1.2 billion
Instantly recognised the world over, thanks to its unique crown, Riyadh’s Kingdom Centre Tower was designed by the team of US-based architecture studio Ellerbe Becket and Omrania, a Saudi design firm. The building’s almond-shaped profile renders a softness, that complements its silver reflective curtain wall. The cap over the inverted arch is a glass skybridge housing a public observation deck. The. $1.2 billion skyscraper is home to exclusive residences, a luxury mall and a Four Seasons hotel. It has played a starring role in many regional cultural events, such as the lighting festival Noor Riyadh, when in 2021 Belgian artist Koert Vermeulen suspended his celestial installation, Star in Motion, in the elliptical void.
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Photo courtesy of the Grand Egyptian Museum3/5Grand Egyptian Museum, Cairo, Egypt, $1.03 billion
Born from a 2003 competition that saw some of the biggest design firms in the running, the complex was envisioned by the Irish firm Heneghan Peng Architects. Construction began in 2005, but unprecedented setbacks – including the 2008 financial crisis, the Arab Spring in 2011 and the COVID-19 pandemic – pushed the Grand Egyptian Museum many years behind schedule. There are murmurs of an imminent inauguration.
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Buena Vista Images4/5Louvre Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, UAE, $650million ++
Putting a cost to this iconic museum’s first outpost beyond France is not as straightforward as one might think, because after all, a lot rides on its name. Designed by Jean Nouvel, the 260,000-square-foot complex covered by a tessellated roof cost approximately $650 million to build.
Abu Dhabi paid an additional $520 million to be able to use the name ‘Louvre’ for 30 years, plus there is a $747 million fee for exchange for art loans, special exhibitions and guidance.
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Photo courtesy of the National Museum of Qatar5/5National Museum of Qatar, Doha, Qatar, $434 million
Inspired one of the Middle East’s most mesmerising natural phenomena – the desert rose, a mineral composite where crystals take the shape of flower – this 430,000-square-foot museum designed by Jean Nouvel is home to 11 permanent galleries.
Located across from the corniche in Doha, the museum’s interlocked structure weaves in and out of the historic waterfront district, integrating with and revitalising the neighbourhood in myriad ways.
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