OUB Centre Limited announces plans for new commercial tower

September 25, 2008

New commercial tower marks strong renewal for Raffles Place

OUB Centre Limited today unveiled plans for a spectacular new 38-storey commercial tower which will form part of One Raffles Place, creating a new gateway to Singapore’s established centre of business and commerce.

The new One Raffles Place tower will provide 350,000 square feet of Prime Grade A office space and is scheduled to be completed in 2011. It will stand alongside the existing OUB Centre, one of Singapore’s tallest buildings, officially opened by the then Prime Minster Lee Kuan Yew 20 years ago.

Henry Kok Moo Yong, General Manager of OUB Centre Limited, said that Raffles Place had been the centre of commerce in Singapore for over a century.

From the time Sir Stamford Raffles arrived in Singapore, this area has been the heart of Singapore’s commercial district. The first banks and mercantile centres opened their doors here in 1823 and Raffles Place remains the heart of Singapore’s thriving business scene today.

“Over the years, Raffles Place has gone through many transformations as it expanded to meet the needs of business growth,” said Mr Kok.

“The opening of OUB Centre as the tallest building in the world outside of the United States in 1988 was a key step for the district. This new tower marks another milestone and reflects our confidence in Singapore’s growing business scene and this location.”

The new tower will entail an investment of $540 million, excluding land costs. It will complement the existing OUB Centre tower and retail mall. Combined, the two towers will provide 760,000 square feet of prime Grade A office space. The entire development will be known as One Raffles Place, emphasising the premier location of both office towers and the retail mall.

Designed by Japan’s internationally renowned Tange Associates led by Paul Tange, the elegant crystalline tower affords panoramic views of Raffles Place and the Singapore River.

Paul Tange said, “This is a special project for me as my father, Kenzo Tange, designed the original OUB Centre tower more than two decades ago. It was one of his first skyscrapers and is still considered by architectural experts to be one of the top 100 skyscrapers in the world.

“Architecture should reflect the times so this new tower has its own expression. The delicate glass façade and a series of diagonal planes guide the eye upwards in a spiral to the triangular pinnacle.

“The new tower is very faithful to the proportions of the original tower. The diagonal planes of the new building relate directly to the spacing of the windows in the original OUB Centre, while the triangular peak is exactly the same height as the lower level of the original tower.

“From the Singapore River, the new tower will be visible as a sparkling crystal framed by UOB Plaza 1 and 2, and dynamic lighting effects will ensure it stands out strongly among its stone clad neighbours,” said Mr Tange.

The new One Raffles Place tower will include raised floors, business continuity services and large column-free floorplates. Security measures will include 24-hour CCTV monitoring at all main entrances and exits, controlled by access cards. It also encompasses environmental management features such as photovoltaic cells and rainwater harvesting – which will reduce impact on the environment.

One Raffles Place is a short stroll via an air-conditioned link to Raffles Place MRT station, the busiest train station in Singapore carrying more than 126,000 passengers a day.