The Burj Dubai is set to become the tallest building in the world, with some unofficial reports claiming the building overtook the Taipei 101 on Wednesday, and others that an official announcement will be made on Saturday.

Property developers Emaar are being tight lipped on the rumours and would not confirm the stories yesterday, but if confirmed, Dubai's latest icon must now be taller than 509 metres (1,671 feet), the height of Taiwan's Taipei 101.

Burj Dubai will eventually hold the record in all four categories as recognised by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, have the highest publicly accessible observation deck, and the world's fastest lift, which will shoot along at 65km/hour (40mph).

Until Emaar's official statement - expected shortly - there is still some confusion as to which record will have been broken however, with the Sears Tower, Ostankino Tower and CN Tower potentially still claiming to be tallest under various definitions of a ‘building' and ‘tower'.

What is clear is the building itself, which is now visible from across the city of Dubai, and upon completion will be possible to see from 90km away. The last official statement was released on July 15th when the tower's height was reported to be 507.3 metres (1,664.4 feet), totalling 140 completed floors.



That suggests Burj Dubai has surpassed the Petronas Twin Towers, presently the second-tallest building in the world at 452 metres (1,483 feet).

In February 2007, the Burj Dubai surpassed the Sears Tower as the building with the most floors.

The Burj Dubai is to be the centerpiece of a city within a city. The development as a whole will include 30,000 homes, nine hotels, 6.2 acres of parkland, 19 residential towers, the Dubai Mall, and a 30 acre man-made lake. The development will cost about $20 billion.

When Emaar does make its announcement, the Burj Dubai will still not, officially, be able to take the mantle as the world's tallest building. The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat will not recognise its world-record height until it is completed.