Tallest Skyscraper in Europe Reaches Its Peak

The Lakhta Center Multifunctional Complex, as the 400,000 m² project is known in full, will house the headquarters of Gazprom Group and consist of four parts: the 87-story twisting skyscraper, a multifunctional building, an "Arch" entrance building, and a "Stylobate" with car park and other services. The spire was installed with the highest crane in Europe rather than helicopters. As can be seen in these photos, the installation took place at the height of winter, when working conditions at such heights must have been a challenge. 

The spire is the last functional element in the Lakhta Center skyscraper. Although it reaches 462 meters, the hightest occupied floor is at approximately 369 meters, where an observation deck is located.

Although the skyscraper will be the tallest building in Europe (most of the top-10 are located in Russia, it should be noted), Lakhta Center doesn't even scratch the top 50 in CTBUH's list of 100 Future Tallest Buildings in the World by Height to Architectural Top. In that list of towers built, proposed and under construction, Lakhta Center comes in at number 52. Most of the towers taller than it are located, not surprisingly, in China and the Middle East.

Construction of the above-ground part of the skyscraper took only 2.5 years, from September 2015 to January 2018. The tower is in the Guinness Book of World Records for its foundation slab: 3.6 meters thick, it was poured without interruption for 49 hours.