The prestige property in Hamburg’s Hafencity was launched under Olaf Scholz: at 245 meters, the Elbtower is set to be one of the tallest skyscrapers in Germany. But nothing has happened on the construction site for weeks.
Logistics billionaire Klaus-Michael Kühne is considering joining the currently dormant Elbtower skyscraper project in Hamburg’s Hafencity. “Kühne Holding is currently evaluating ways in which it can contribute to a solution to the Elbtower problem,” said a spokeswoman for Kühne Holding AG (Schindellegi/Switzerland) in response to a dpa request. However, there are currently no discussions with the city of Hamburg “and no current negotiations”. The spokeswoman did not comment on details.
The “Handelsblatt” had previously reported that Kühne was examining a takeover of the Elbtower. The project, which costs almost a billion euros, is the most prominent construction site of the Signa Group, founded by the Austrian billionaire René Benko, which has slipped into crisis. Benko himself has now withdrawn from the Signa business. The business is managed by the German restructuring expert Arndt Geiwitz.
A query from Signa remained unanswered. A spokesman for the Hamburg urban development authority simply said: “Please understand that we generally do not take part in speculation.”
No decision has been made yet
Kühne only emphasized at the beginning of November that he was not available as a financier. “Kühne Holding is far from being involved in Elbtower and is only marginally involved in one or two discussions about partial or complete solutions regarding Signa Prime,” Kühne told the “Hamburger Abendblatt”. “There are currently no signs of solutions involving Kühne Holding,” it said at the time.
The “Handelsblatt” reports that the Kühne Holding has not yet made any decisions. In this context, those around the group point out that the city does not yet have access to the project.
According to the contract between the city of Hamburg and Signa, the shell must be completed by the beginning of 2028 at the latest, otherwise there is a risk of fines of 500,000 euros per month, up to a maximum of 10 million euros. The city could buy back the unfinished building from Signa in 2029 at the earliest in return for a refund of the purchase price of 117 million euros. “Insolvency would immediately trigger the right of repurchase,” said Urban Development Senator Karen Pein (SPD) in mid-November. According to its own statements, the authority only found out about the construction stop at the end of October – despite monthly reports from a construction controller commissioned by the project developer.
With 65 floors and 245 meters, the Elbtower is set to become Germany’s third tallest building. According to previous information from Signa Real Estate, the skyscraper should cost 950 million euros.
Source: Stern
