Russian energy company GazProm's new tower goes green

[NewsHottie]

It seems that every new tower proposal these days makes claims about how green friendly the design is, but when the builder is a huge energy conglomerate, this type of claim is bound to raise a few eyebrows.
Russia's GazProm has been trying to build a new office tower in St. Petersburg for years, but they keep getting a lot of opposition from locals who feel that the 'corn cob' will spoil the city's elegant low rise skyline. The latest revision of the design does nothing to lessen its visual impact, but could reduce any push back from environmentalists by making it one of the most energy efficient buildings in the world.
With temperatures ranging from the minus 20s in the winter, to the mid 80s in summer, St. Petersburg's climate is especially brutal, but by building the tower with a double wall of glass that sandwiches a bevy of trees and plants, the architects say the building will not require a traditional power hungry heating and cooling system. Special glass that changes color with the temperature will provide further regulation.
If the project gets a green light, construction is expected to begin later this year with completion scheduled for 2012.
The Journal of Turkish Weekly, via Luxist


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