Pearl River Tower

Advanced wind engineering for a supertall skyscraper that generates its own wind power

The Pearl River Tower in Guangzhou, China, is a 71-story skyscraper renowned for its pioneering energy-efficient design. The building incorporates a double-skin façade, underfloor air ventilation, radiant cooling, and integrates solar and wind energy to reduce reliance on the city’s grid. Its most innovative feature is four openings with turbines that capture wind passing through the tower, effectively doubling wind speed and amplifying energy production eightfold compared with stand-alone turbines. The Pearl River Tower has earned LEED Platinum certification and global recognition for sustainable design, using roughly 30% less energy than comparable buildings while demonstrating how architectural form and environmental performance can be seamlessly integrated.