Europe's tallest abandoned building remains unfinished in Hamburg

Europe's tallest unfinished building, the Elbtower in Hamburg, has been standing abandoned for four years. Construction began in 2021 but was paused in 2023 due to the bankruptcy of its main financier. Now, Dieter Becken hopes to complete the project. To raise funds, Becken plans to rent out part of the building's ground floor to Hamburg's Natural History Museum. He is waiting for approval from city authorities, and time is running out. He needs to secure the money by April. The total cost to finish the Elbtower is estimated at around 700 million euros, or £587 million. When completed, it will reach a height of 800 feet. Currently, the structure stands at only 328 feet. The Elbtower will be taller than the Gherkin in London and will become Hamburg's tallest building. The project has faced some political mixed reactions. While Chancellor Olaf Scholz supported it, some local parties were skeptical. The Elbtower is located in Hafen City, near the famous Elbphilharmonie concert hall. The Elbtower is not the tallest abandoned building in the world; that title belongs to the Goldin Finance 117 in Tianjin, China. That project started in 2008 and remains unfinished today, planned to be significantly larger than the Elbtower.