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Before the year came to a close, The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) highlighted significant milestones achieved in each month of 2016 by a number of building projects around the world. It was a snapshot of the sheer scale of skyscraper development that took place, which turned out to be a chart-busting year for building completions. In its annual report, the 2016 Tall Building Year in Review, CTBUH notes that 128 buildings of 200 metres in height or greater were completed, marking the third consecutive record-breaking year.
The achievement beat the previous record set in 2015, which saw 114 200-metre-plus completions. With another 128 buildings being added to the worldwide portfolio, there are now 1,168 skyscrapers that boast a height of 200 metres or greater. That figure represents an astonishing 441 percent increase from 2000, when only 265 existed. Of the 128 new completions, 18 of them became the tallest in their respective cities, regions, or countries.
Despite the resounding success in global skyscraper development, supertall completions were lacklustre compared to previous years. A total of ten were delivered in 2016, a relatively disappointing number that has largely been attributed to construction delays common for buildings of this magnitude. 2015 still holds the supertall record with 14 coming online, and 2014 in second with 11, while 2016 sits comfortably in third place.
To the surprise of no one who has been actively involved or closely watching the industry, Asia dominated skyscraper development yet again. A whopping 107 buildings — 84 percent of the 128 total — were built on the continent. The 530-metre Guangzhou CTF Finance Centre was the tallest skyscraper completed in 2016, and it is also now the tallest in the city, the second-tallest in China, and the fifth-tallest in the world. With 84 developments, China had the most 200-metre-plus completions for the ninth year in a row. Its previous record of 68 was set the year before. One of its biggest cities, Shenzhen, marked 11 skyscraper completions in 2016.
The Middle East saw sustained action as well, matching its 2015 numbers with nine completions. The North American continent was responsible for seven completions, increasing its performance from 2015, which only saw four skyscraper deliveries. All seven North American completions took place in the United States, with five located in New York City. South Korea and Indonesia supported six and five skyscrapers respectively, while the Philippines and Qatar tied with four.
Just over half of the projects were office towers, a trend that has held true for years. It's expected to continue in 2017; only ten of the 18 to 27 supertalls projected by CTBUH to complete in 2016 actually did. Taking this into account, CTBUH estimates that 2017 will witness 12 to 20 supertall completions, with Shenzhen's Ping An Finance Center being the tallest.
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