A still-under-construction building in Moscow has robbed London’s Shard of its ‘tallest building in Europe’ accolade, telegraph.co.uk reports. Mercury City – which comprises residential and office space – measures 1,109 feet, according to tower’s developers. That’s 92 feet taller than the Shard, which was completed only a few months ago.

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The building, which features glass-based external cladding, is not likely to be finished until Q1 2013, but exceeded the British record back in September. Numbering 70 storeys, Mercury City was designed by architects Frank Williams and Mikhail Posokhin.

Inspired by the iconic US towers

It is being built by the retail billionaire, Igor Kesaev, who said that he was inspired to build such a tall building by the iconic towers of the USA.

“When I first came to New York in 1991 and saw the Chrysler building and the Citibank one, I thought that such kind of skyscrapers should appear in Moscow,” Kesaev told independent.co.uk. “Now, 20 years later, this dream has come true.”

Emerging Moscow City development

Image source via BpbAlonka

However, like the Shard, Mercury City may not hold the title for long. Being constructed right next door is Federation Tower, due for completion next year and tipped to reach 1,660 feet. Both are situated in the emerging Moscow City development, which incidentally also houses two other former tallest buildings.

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USA, Middle East and Asia all boast far taller structures

Even the thought of Federation Tower pales into insignificance given that the USA, Middle East and Asia all boast far taller structures. The Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai, for example, stands at 2,717 feet tall – more than double its nearest European rivals.

Author: Elizabeth Smythe   Date Written: 02 November 2012