This skyscraper is Bahrain's iconic statement. The Bahrain World Trade Center (787 ft) is the first skyscraper in the world (2008) to integrate wind turbines into its design. The towers were designed by the multi-national firm Atkins.
The two towers are linked via three skybridges, each holding a 225kW wind turbine, totalling to 675kW of wind power production. Each of these turbines measure 95 ft in diameter, and is aligned north, which is the direction from which air from the Persian Gulf blows in. The sail-shaped buildings on either side are designed to funnel wind through the gap to provide accelerated wind passing through the turbines. This was confirmed by wind tunnel tests, which showed that the buildings create an S-shaped flow, ensuring that any wind coming within a 45° angle to either side of the central axis will create a wind stream that remains perpendicular to the turbines. This significantly increases their potential to generate electricity. The wind turbines are expected to provide 11% to 15% of the towers' total power consumption, or approximately 1.1 to 1.3 GWh a year. This is equivalent to providing the lighting for about 300 homes annually.
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