Merdeka 118 is a 118-storey, 678.9 metre tall mega skyscraper in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The building’s name, Merdeka, which means ‘independence’ in Malay, is inspired by the two historical stadiums; Stadium Merdeka and Stadium Negara which is just located nearby. The Merdeka 118 tower will be the second world’s tallest building behind the Burj Khalifa and the tallest building in Malaysia.
Read more about the buildings that were once the tallest in Kuala Lumpur.
The whole Merdeka 118 development is a 19-acre land funded by Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) and will consist of 400,000 square metres (4,300,000 square feet) of residential, hotel, commercial and public space.
The building is situated on Petaling Hill, on the location of the former Merdeka Park, which was subsequently repurposed into an open-air car park before it was developed into the existing skyscraper.
The site lies within the vicinity of landmarks such as Petaling Street, sporting venues including Merdeka Stadium, National Stadium, Victoria Institution and Chinatown.
The Merdeka 118 development, when completed, will also have access to the newly built Merdeka MRT Station on the Kajang Line (SBK) and be directly linked from three major roads via the Belfield Tunnel, which will be a 2-storey underground tunnel passing underneath Kampung Attap and Jalan Maharajalela to the basement of the precinct.
Photo / IG @anb519
The Design & Architecture
The building is designed with a mixture of diamond shaped glass facades to signify the diversity of Malaysians. The design was made to resemble and inspired by Tunku Abdul Rahman’s outstretched hand gesture while chanting “Merdeka!“, when he proclaimed the independence of Malaysia on 31 August 1957. The building’s cladding will comprise 18,144 panels, 114,000 square-metre of glass and 1,600 tonnes of window frame extrusions.
Photo / IG @shinji_akimura
Photo / IG @isaac_chong82
The building will be equipped and illuminated at night with 8.4 km of LED light strips which would gradually move from one corner to another. The Merdeka 118 development also achieved platinum rating with three Green Building certification bodies: Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), Green Building Index and GreenRE.
Photo / IG @aereonwong
What’s In Merdeka 118?
The mixed development of the Merdeka 118 project includes office spaces, 118 Mall (shopping mall), Park Hyatt KL, The View at 118 (observation deck) and serviced residences.
Public Transportation
The building will be served by the Kajang Line’s Merdeka MRT station located along Jalan Hang Jebat, which is connected to an interchange with the Ampang/Sri Petaling Line’s Plaza Rakyat LRT station.
It will also be accessible from the Maharajalela Monorail station connected through the precinct’s linear park under the development.
The Hang Tuah station, serving both the Ampang Line and KL Monorail, is a 600-metre walk southeast.
Check out the urban sketchers that memorialised Merdeka 118 through their sketches and drawings.
