Russian energy giant Gazprom said on August 20 that it has finally been given the go ahead to begin constructing a giant skyscraper in St. Petersburg for its new headquarters. The announcement seems to have finally brought a long-running saga to an end, as the controversial project has been plagued by criticism and objections ever since it was first proposed in 2006.
Gazprom's Skyscraping Giant
![The project's designers have described the proposed new building as "a highly sustainable concept," which includes an "intelligent" double outer skin to minimise heat loss in the freezing Russian winters.](https://gdb.rferl.org/bf17c046-895f-4ef9-8070-0afa442b1f87_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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The project's designers have described the proposed new building as "a highly sustainable concept," which includes an "intelligent" double outer skin to minimise heat loss in the freezing Russian winters.
![The new location for Gazprom's headquarters is a 17-hectare brownfield site on the edge of St Petersburg, formerly used for the industrial storage of sand.](https://gdb.rferl.org/a7b2a7e1-0a42-4ada-bd8d-9c577607046c_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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The new location for Gazprom's headquarters is a 17-hectare brownfield site on the edge of St Petersburg, formerly used for the industrial storage of sand.
![The new building should rise to a height of 426 meters and comprise 330,000 square meters of internal space.](https://gdb.rferl.org/39cc82f2-b33f-4879-a3db-c6fa020ff8a5_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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The new building should rise to a height of 426 meters and comprise 330,000 square meters of internal space.
![The giant building is expected to cost $3 billion.](https://gdb.rferl.org/bfebe6bb-cb82-41ef-a134-f132f1ba3b8f_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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The giant building is expected to cost $3 billion.
![The project is due to be completed by 2018.](https://gdb.rferl.org/7bbb2ca8-4a92-4028-bb45-e22ed03eaadf_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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The project is due to be completed by 2018.