The Forbes International Tower, a 240-meter-tall office building due to be constructed close to the Iconic Tower — Africa’s tallest building — was planned from the outset to be environmentally conscious. The building marks the latest chapter in net-zero architecture, following the likes of Foster + Partner’s Z6 tower in Beijing, which has net-zero operational emissions, and the upcoming Curzon Wharf in Birmingham, England, featuring a 565-foot tower as part of a large, net-zero carbon mixed-use development. Using hydrogen to reduce a building’s emissions is a novel approach, however. A potentially clean and renewable energy source — though only when sourced and produced through certain methods — hydrogen is an abundant asset little-utilized at this scale in architecture or by private enterprise.
