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Southeast Asia’s tallest skyscraper may break ground this year


Southeast Asia’s tallest skyscraper may break ground this year

Cambodia could scale unchartered heights very soon

Photo of sunrise over Cambodia capital
Phnom Penh sunrise. getideaka / Shutterstock.com

Project insiders have told The Phnom Penh Post that construction of the Thai Boon Roong Twin Trade Center, a 500-metre high, 133-storey skyscraper, will begin by the end of the year. The project’s groundbreaking will reportedly take place within a few months.

Architect Tous Saphoeun, who is involved in the project sketches, confirmed this week that the plot for the building is suitable for projects that go up to 200 storeys and “all three steps of the testing phase” are done. “Although the property market has seen some problems in the sales department, it does not pose a problem in beginning the construction,” he says.

More: Is Cambodia, future site of ASEAN’s tallest building, ready for a big quake?

The project’s completion, set for 2019, may be out of step with reality, however. “Although the targeted completion date is within quite a short timeframe, realistically, a development of this scale is going to take significantly longer to complete,” says Ross Wheble, Knight Frank Cambodia manager, adding that infrastructure at present would not be able to support a project of this scale.

The Post notes that the project has links to Chinese investor Ng Lap Seng, who will stand trial in the US in January for attempting to bribe John Ashe, former president of the UN General Assembly.

Read next: Why Phnom Penh’s airport district is suddenly taking off

Source: Property Report