Summary
The Pinnacle, also Pinnacle Towers, is a building on hold in Nairobi, the capital and largest city of Kenya. When completed, the skyscraper is expected to become the second tallest building in Africa after Egypt's Iconic Tower, and the third tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere, at 70 stories and over 1,000 feet (300 m) in height.[1]
| The Pinnacle | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Alternative names | Pinnacle Towers |
| Hotel chain | Hilton |
| General information | |
| Status | Under construction, which might be resumed in November 2025 |
| Type | Mixed Use Commercial |
| Location | Upper Hill |
| Town or city | Nairobi |
| Country | Kenya |
| Coordinates | 01°17′48″S 36°49′05″E / 1.29667°S 36.81806°E |
| Elevation | 1,710 metres (5,610 ft) |
| Groundbreaking | 23 May 2017 |
| Cost | Sh20 billion (Est) |
| Height | |
| Architectural | 1,050 feet (320 m) |
| Top floor | 1,000 feet (300 m) |
| Observatory | 916 feet (279 m) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 70 |
| Grounds | 2.5 acres (1.0 ha) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architecture firm | Archgroup Consultants |
| Developer | White Lotus Group / Jabavu Village |
| Engineer | Meinhardt |
| Quantity surveyor | BECS Consultancy |
| Main contractor | China State Construction Engineering Corporation |
| Other information | |
| Number of rooms | 257 |
| Website | |
| www | |
Location edit
The skyscraper is located in Upper Hill, on a 2.5 acres (10,000 m2) piece of property, approximately 4 kilometres (2 mi), south-west of the city centre of Nairobi, the capital city of Kenya.[2]
Overview edit
The development consists of two adjacent towers. The shorter tower, at 46 floors will house the 257-room, five-star Upper Hill Hilton Hotel, the third Hilton franchise in Nairobi and the 50th on the African continent.[3] The taller tower, with 70 floors, will feature eleven floors of commercial office space, nine floors of upscale rental retail space, and 46 floors with 210 upscale 1, 2 and 3-bedroom, serviced residential apartments. Other amenities include conference facilities, a gymnasium, luxury spa and an infinity pool. The taller tower will have a rooftop helipad, to allow chopper directly from/to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, 16 kilometres (10 mi) away.[4]
Ownership edit
The development is a joint venture by Hass Petroleum an East African petroleum products distributor and the White Lotus Group, a Dubai-based investment firm.[5][6] The White Lotus Conglomerate is run by Indian businessman and godman Vijaykumar Naidu, otherwise known as Kalki Bhagwan. Helping him run the business are his son N.K.V. Krishna and daughter-in-law Preetha Krishna.[7][8]
Construction and funding edit
The budgeted construction cost for the Pinnacle Towers is US$200 million. Of that, the developers contributed US$50 million and the balance was borrowed, from Afreximbank and some Kenyan banks.[9] The main contractor is China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC). Commissioning of the building is expected in 2020.[10]
Delays and land ownership dispute edit
A dispute has arisen over ownership of part of the land being used for construction.[11] The High Court has issued arrest warrants for the directors of White Lotus Projects, Poosapati Ramachandra Raju Sita and Mohamud Mahat Noor.[11] The dispute began when legal action was taken against Hass Petroleum by Ugandan tycoon James Mugoya and a trust formed by former United Arab Emirates leader Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan.[11]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "THE PINNACLE". www.thepinnacleofafrica.com. Retrieved 15 November 2018.
- ^ Globefeed.com (27 April 2018). "Distance between Central Business District, Nairobi, Kenya and Nairobi Upper Hill, Nairobi, Kenya". Globefeed.com. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
- ^ Monks, Kieron (26 June 2017). "Work begins on the tallest skyscraper in Africa". Cable News Network (CNN). Retrieved 26 April 2018.
- ^ Property 24 (15 January 2018). "Kenya will be home to Africa's tallest skyscraper, The Pinnacle". Cape Town: Property24.com. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Kiganda, Anthony (27 March 2018). "Construction work starts on Africa's tallest building in Kenya". Nairobi: Constructionreviewonline.com.
- ^ Herbling, David (23 May 2017). "Hilton kicks off second Nairobi high-end hotel". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
- ^ Imranullah, Mohamed (22 November 2019). "'Kalki' Bhagavan's daughter-in-law moves HC against 'look out circular'". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
- ^ "Rs 44 cr cash, 90 kg gold, Rs 20 cr worth US dollars seized in I-T raids on properties linked to spiritual guru Kalki Bhagwan". DNA India. 21 October 2019.
- ^ Biko, Jackson (27 April 2018). "Men who gave Africa its tallest building". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
- ^ Gideone Kiarie, and Sandra Chao (6 October 2016). "Hilton replies to hotel rivals with 45-floor Nairobi tower". Daily Nation. Nairobi. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
- ^ a b c "Dubai tycoons building Africa's tallest building wanted by Nairobi court". Nairobi News. Retrieved 8 May 2020.