Work will soon begin on what will become the tallest building in the French city of Lyon – the Incity Tower, batiactu.com reports.

At 39-storeys high, construction on the Valode & Pistre-designed skyscraper will commence on 11 April, with an expected completion date of December 2015.

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The new spire will reach the 200-metre high mark

Part of the Lyon Part-Dieu project, it is hoped that the iconic tower will assist in the city’s revival. Part-Dieu aims to position Lyon as a business district, creating new office space, over-hauling old buildings and improving residents’ quality of life. The Incity Tower will act as the showstopper.

The €124 million project will stand taller than Lyon’s current tallest building, the 165-metre tall ‘Pencil’, which was built in 1977.

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Incity’s spire will reach the 200-metre high mark. Constructed by Bouygues for use by real estate developer, Sogelym Dixence, Incity Tower will accommodate 2,700 employees over 44,145 square metres.

Plans include a double-skin insulating facade

According to theconstructionindex.co.uk, the tower has been planned ‘in line with the principles of sustainable construction’, incorporating a glass double-skin insulating facade which will allow natural light in and minimise the need for artificial illumination. It is claimed that the tower will consume far less energy than older office blocks, at 90kWhPE per square metre per year, compared with the 300-800kWhPE that other towers report.

An emblematic project for Lyon

Commenting on the news, Sogelym Dixence chairman Jean-Claude Condamin said:

“I have enjoyed a relationship of trust with the directors of the Bouygues Construction Group for many years. We have managed to create a partnership together based on mutual esteem and respect on the part of both teams.”

“I am particularly happy to be building Incity, an emblematic project for Lyon, with the Bouygues Construction Group.”

Author: Elizabeth Smythe    Date Written: 28 February 2013