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Nevertheless, the folk at Emaar Properties in Dubai are doing their best to improve the Burj Khalifa's energy diet. Today, they announced that the building's hot-water system had gone solar.

The Burj Khalifa observation deck could soon drop to the position of world's fourth highest, according to statistics received by Construction Week from Chicago-based world skyscraper authority, the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH). Emaar contends that it offers “the world's highest observation deck with an outdoor terrace”.

Just over halfway to its planned height, the Tokyo Sky Tree became the tallest structure in Japan on Monday when construction reached 338 meters (1,108 feet). When completed, it will stand 634 meters (2,080 feet). The Sky Tree on Monday surpassed the city’s 333-meter (1,092-foot) Tokyo Tower, a landmark and top tourist attraction since it opened in 1958.

It costs twice as much to get into the Burj Khalifa’s observation deck, despite it being only the second highest in the world, as it does to enter the world’s highest viewing deck in the Shanghai World Financial Centre in China. Online tickets for 'At The Top' on the Burj Khalifa cost a minimum of US $27.2 (AED100) and go up to $109 for fast track viewings, while tickets to the top-most observatory deck in the world cost a mere $14.6 (CNY100).

The world’s tallest building is to ‘go dark’ on March 27, in order to observe Earth Hour, the global initiative against climate change. Emaar Properties, developer of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, is to switch off the exterior lights of its landmark developments from 8.30pm to 9.30pm.

The first of two fashion-brand hotels to open this year in Dubai (there's also a Palazzo Versace in the pipeline), the Armani Hotel will take up floors five to eight and two higher levels of the Burj Khalifa. Don't expect anything here to be done on a subtle scale – 160 rooms and suites (all furnished with signature Armani/ Casa designs), Armani/Dolci artisan confectionery, Armani/Fiori bespoke flower arrangements, an Armani/Privé nightclub and a spa will all be part of the operation when it opens next month.

Giorgio Armani’s first hotel, due to open in Dubai’s Burj Khalifa today, will be delayed by more than a month, said two people with knowledge of the plan. The luxury hotel, occupying 10 floors of the world’s tallest building, is now scheduled to open on April 22, said the people, who declined to be identified because there hasn’t been an official announcement.

The number of completed buildings in Dubai during 2009 topped the 2,500-mark, according to Dubai Municipality data released by the Dubai Statistics Centre (DSC). These numbers are set to grow this year, with Burj Khalifa delivered in January 2010. The value of these completed buildings, according to DSC statistics, was Dh24.89 billion.

At 2717 feet it towers above the competition—it's more than two and a half times the size of the Chrysler tower, and while the previous top five highest buildings were all within a couple of hundred feet of each other, the 160-story Burj Khalifa beats the old world-record-holder, the Taipei 101, by some 900 feet. For size-conscious architects, the gauntlet hasn't been thrown. It has been launched into space and threatens to blot out the sun.

Armani Hotel Dubai has started taking bookings ahead of its official opening on March 18. Room categories available at the 160-room property include 24 Armani Studios, 44 Armani Classic rooms, 38 Armani Premiere rooms, 36 Armani Suites, six Armani Executive and six Armani Ambassador Suites, and five Armani Signature Suites. The hotel will also feature eight restaurants, the region’s first and only Armani/Privé club, the world’s first in-hotel Armani/SPA, plus Armani/Dolci a chocolate and sweets store, the Armani/Fiori flower shop and accessories outlet Armani/Galleria.