In Mother Russia, Okhta Tower Builds You!

Jun 02

In Mother Russia, Okhta Tower Builds You!

St. Petersburg will be the site of the tallest and one of the most ecofriendly buildings in Europe. The Okhta Tower, coming in at almost 400m, is commissioned by Gazprom (Think Russia’s ExxonMobil) and promises to be “one of the most environmentally sustainable high rise buildings in the world,” according to to the architect, RMJM.

The spire, similar to the Bank of America greenscraper in NYC, is a twisted glass needle that reaches for the sky. I can’t tell if there is an equivalent of the LEED certification in Russia, but the Okhta looks to be very green:

the building will have inner and outer glazed glass walls that will insulate nicely
glass exoskeleton will create an atrium ‘greenhouse’ effect, protecting from the -30 degree winters
social spaces and green ‘breakout’ zones which will reduce mass exodus at lunch time
specialized plumbing, heating and ventilation systems

Via Pure Comtemporary