During a two-day visit to the construction site last week, Mr. Othman Benjelloun, Chairman of Bank of Africa (BMCE Group), was accompanied by Mr. Johan Beerlandt, Chairman of BESIX Group and Mr. Mohammed Bouzoubaa, CEO of TGCC, to witness the progress made on the O Tower development in Rabat, Morocco. The Mohammed VI Tower, a 250-metre high-rise, is being built under a design-and-build contract by a joint venture (JV) of Belgian contractor BESIX and Travaux Généraux de Construction de Casablanca (TGCC). Currently, the team is on track to commence works on the façades scheduled in June.
Joined by Mr. Johan Beerlandt, Chairman of BESIX Group, Mr. Pierre Sironval, COO of BESIX Group, and Mr. Mohammed Bouzoubaa, CEO of TGCC, Mr. Benjelloun toured the 55-storey development, designed by Rafael de la Hoz & Hakim Benjelloun. Both architects were present during the visit.
The first day started with a guided tour around the second floor of the building, where the parties could inspect the future offices. All floors of the podium have been poured and the structural works are visible. The tour continued on level 13, at 50 metres, with a magnificent view over the Bouregreg river, which flows next to the tower.
Impressed by the progress made since last time’s visit, Mr. Benjelloun applauded the team for the clear evolution that could be seen over the course of five weeks.
Since then, the project has entered a critical phase, with several activities on site going on simultaneously and at a rapid pace. The concrete structure has climbed up to 100 meters, following the steel structure’s lead. Moreover, the team started building the framework which will serve as a structure to install the tower’s stunning façades on. Designed by BESIX’s Façade Department, the façades cover an area of more than 70,000 m², 41,000 m² for the tower and 32,500 m² for the podium. The south façade of the tower is fitted with photovoltaic panels, one of several innovations implemented in the project.
“Our team managed to show a great ability to adapt and deal with the varying constraints of this project. This agile way of working and aligning the several activities on site is key to continue our great progress.” - Bjorn Walgraeve, Project Director at BESIX
The second day was devoted to an exhaustive review of the retro-planning to achieve successfully the milestones that lie ahead. One of which is installing the façades, expected to start in June. At the same time, the first mock-up spaces will be presented to the client.
The project is planned to be completed by 2022 and is being designed to be certified LEED Gold and HQE building.
Once completed, the Mohammed VI Tower will be visible from a distance of 50 kilometres all round and will form the high point in the Bouregreg Valley Development Project, which in turn is a leading part of the programme for Rabat, the City of Light, the Moroccan Capital of Culture.
For more updates on the Tower Mohammed VI, visit the project page or watch the video shared by the client.
