Burj Dubai now world's tallest manmade structure

Emaar Properties' iconic Burj Dubai has reached a towering 629 metres, smashing the existing record to become the world’s tallest manmade structure, the developer said on Monday.

The 160-storey tower, already the world’s tallest building and tallest free-standing structure, has now surpassed the 628.8-metre high KVLY-TV mast in North Dakota, US.

The KVLY-TV mast, used for transmitting television signals, had held the title of world’s tallest supported structure since 1963.

Emaar Chairman Mohamed Ali Alabbar said the new record was another milestone for the Burj Dubai, placing the city in the global spotlight once again.

“With over 160 storeys now, the most number of liveable floors in any building in the world, Burj Dubai is already pushing the frontiers in architecture, construction and engineering excellence,” Alabbar said in a statement.

Emaar plans for the Burj Dubai to eventually be the tallest structure in the world in all four of the criteria listed by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH).

The council measures height to the structural top, the highest occupied floor, to the top of the roof, and to the tip of the spire, pinnacle, antenna, mast or flag pole.

The Burj Dubai will not be officially recognised as the world's tallest structure until it is completed in early 2009.

Emaar has remained tight lipped over the final height, but it is rumoured to be around 900 metres.

Local media reports last year said the final height would be 818 metres, citing architects drawings posted on the internet.

The Burj Dubai is to be the centrepiece of a city within a city, Downtown Burj Dubai. The $20 billion development as a whole will include 30,000 homes, nine hotels, 6.2 acres of parkland, 19 residential towers, the Dubai Mall, and a 30-acre manmade lake.

However, Emaar’s triumph may not last long with Dubai developer Nakheel planning to build its own 1,200-metre high tower, which would comfortably surpass the Burj Dubai.

The tower is expected to be located on Dubai’s Arabian Canal, a $61 billion project being developed by Dubai-based developer Limitless.

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