Tall Buildings in Numbers South Korea: Past, Present, and Future By Nathaniel Hollister, Seth Ellsworth, and Antony Wood As of the year 2000, there were only nine buildings 150 meters or taller in all of South Korea. Just twelve years later, there are now 124 buildings 150+ meters in height completed, with another 13 scheduled to complete by the end of this year. That amounts to an incredible 1,500% increase in just over a decade. This dramatic increase has accelerated even further in the most recent years, with roughly 50% of the total 150m+ buildings completed in the past three years alone and seven of the country’s future ten tallest buildings currently under construction. These impressive statistics have brought 10,464,051 29,500 / km² South Korea to the forefront of the tall Seoul building industry, with only four countries 21.5% globally containing more completed 150 m+ 55 buildings of total buildings: China (782), USA (653), Japan (154), 2,662,509 and the UAE (131). Currently, South Korea has 5.5% more 150 m+ buildings under construction of total 43.7% than the United States, the United Kingdom, of total Incheon 11 buildings Russia, and Japan combined. The following 16,500 / km² study tracks the exciting history and unique 8.7% 602,122 of total 1.2% 13,000 / km² makeup of the South Korean skyscraper. of total Anyang 488,758 1.0% 4 buildings 2 buildings of total 1.6% 00,000,000 00 buildings 3.2% of total of total xxx% xxx% Key Hwaseong 1 building 5,000 / km² of total of total 0.8% 1,086,904 number of city’s buildings 150m+ in of total 2.2% xxx m of total height and percentage of total Suwon 2,000 / km² city’s population and percentage of total country population (TCP) xxx m height of city’s tallest building 13 silhouette of city’s tallest building 2 buildings Urban Density = 1,000 people/km² 1.6% 1,501,859 According to U.N. Statistics (2007) average height of city’s tallest ten of total 3.1% *Rounded to the nearest 500/km² buildings of total number of buildings 150m+ currently Daejeon under construction (blue & green) or Building Name 2,446,418 8 buildings City topped-out (green only) 5.0% Pohang 6.4% of total Daegu of total 509,475 305 m 6 buildings 1.0% of total 267 m 4.8% of total Ulsan 1,082,567 69 2.2% 5 buildings of total 4.0% of total 32 buildings 25.4% Busan 3,414,950 of total 5.0% Northeast Asia Trade Tower of total 305 m 292 m 264 m South Korea: Total 249 m 230 m 226 m population: 48,754,657 225 m 204 m 201 m 27 11 11 100% of total 168 m 150m+ buildings: 126 100% of total 93 m 92 m Northeast Asia Haeundai I’Park Tower Palace Three Hwaseong Dongtan Suseong Leader's Taehwa River Iaan Notes: Trade Tower Marina Tower 2 Tower G Metapolis 101 View 1 Exodium 1. Data accurate as of September 2011. Incheon Busan Seoul Hwaseong Daegu Ulsan 2. Data souce: CTBUH Tall Building Database, http://buildingdb.ctbuh.org 3. Population data: U.N. (2010), http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic; Republic of Korea (2010), http://kostat.go.kr/eng 48 | Tall Buildings in Numbers CTBUH Journal | 2011 Issue IV Timeline of South Korean Skyscraper Completion Dots represent building type, completion year and height; bars represent number of buildings completed annually; the line represents the average height of the tallest ten buildings each year Office Hotel Residential Mixed-use 500 m 35 bldgs 2011 Projected Completion 450 m 30 bldgs 400 m 25 bldgs 2011: Northeast Asia Trade Tower 2006: Brownstone Seoul 101 350 m 20 bldgs 2004: Tower Palace Three Tower G 300 m 15 bldgs 1985: KLI 63 Building 2001: Star Tower 2011: WBC The Palace Towers 1988: Trade Tower 250 m 10 bldgs Average Height of Tallest Ten Buildings 1992: ASEM Tower 200 m 5 bldgs 1997: Lotte Hotel Busan 150 m 0 bldgs 19851990 1995 2000 2005 2010 Tallest Ten: Sept 2011 Tallest: 305 meters Average: 267 meters Tallest Ten: 2016 Tallest: 556 meters Average: 347 meters 1985–1999 2000–2005 2006–2011 2006–2011 2012–2016 Northeast Asia Trade Tower WBC The Palace 2 KLI 63 Building Lotte Jamsil Busan Lotte World Tower Northeast Asia Haeundae I’Park Haeundae I’Park Incheon 2011 Busan 2011 Seoul 1985 Super Tower Busan 2016 Trade Tower Marina 2 Marina 1 305 m/1,001 ft 265 m/869 ft 249 m/817 ft Seoul 2015 510 m/1,674 ft Incheon 2011 Busan 2011 Busan 2011 556 m/1,823 ft 305 m/1,001 ft 292 m/958 ft 273 m/895 ft Haeundae I’Park WBC The Palace 1 Tower Palace Hwaseong Dongtan Busan IFC Doosan Haeundai Doosan Haeundai Marina Tower 2 Busan 2011 ThreeTower G Metapolis 101 Landmark Tower We’ve the Zenith We’ve the Zenith Busan 2011 265 m/869 ft Seoul 2004 Hwaseong 2010 Busan 2014 Tower A Tower B 292 m/958 ft 264 m/865 ft 249 m/816 ft 338 m/1,109 ft Busan 2011 Busan 2011 301 m/988 ft 282 m/924 ft Haeundae I’Park Mokdong Hwaseong Parc1 Tower A Marina Tower 1 Hyperion Dongtan Seoul 2013 Three International Busan 2011 Tower A Metapolis 104 338 m/1,109 ft Finance Center 273 m/895 ft Seoul 2003 Hwaseong 2010 Seoul 2012 256 m/840 ft 247 m/812 ft 279 m/915 ft The KLI 63 Building was 242 With 48 buildings over 150 meters 68 By the end of 2008, there the fi rst building over 150 currently under construction, 61 were a total of 64 buildings meters tall in South Korea. South Korea stands as the third over 150 meters completed Completed in 1985 at a most active tall building country in South Korea. Since the height of 249 meters, it in the world, behind China (242) start of 2009, an additional marked the beginning of and the U.A.E. (57). 60 have been completed. Korea as a tall building nation. That’s almost 50% of Korea’s 57 Today, the building is still the 48 total tall buildings in less 27 tallest offi ce tower in Korea, 20 than three years. and the 6th tallest building ChinaU.A.E Korea India Russia 1985-2008 2009-2011 overall. Number of buildings 150+ meters under construction Number of buildings 150+ meters completed CTBUH Journal | 2011 Issue IV Tall Buildings in Numbers | 49.