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World's tallest wooden building under construction in western Norway

Xinhua, May 30, 2015 Adjust font size:

Construction of what is soon to become the world's tallest wooden building is well underway in Norway's western coastal city of Bergen.

In the autumn of this year, 62 apartments will become home to new owners in the 14-story structure, known as "The Tree."

The wooden apartment block stands near Puddefjord Bridge in central Bergen, the second largest city in Norway. When completed, the building will be 51 meters high and eclipse the current record holder - the 32-meter and ten-story Forte in Melbourne, Australia.

According to a recent press release of the Norwegian Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the apartment block consists of modules and its framework is made out of glued laminated timber, also called glulam. The process is an eco-friendly way to use timber as a renewable raw material in construction projects, it said.

"We should use more timber in the forest to build beautiful and environmentally-friendly houses, commercial buildings and bridges. It is a more sustainable use of the forest than leaving it to rot," Minister of Agriculture and Food Sylvi Listhaug was quoted as saying.

Wooden buildings taller than Forte have been designed in Canada, Austria, Norway, and Sweden, but The Tree is the only proposal that has been realized and nearly completed. Endit