Snøhetta, in collaboration with Arctic Adventure of Norway and the Powerhouse Collaboration*, is creating the first building in a northern climate to be built according to the energy positive Powerhouse standard. The building, a circular hotel dubbed “Svart,” will reduce its yearly energy consumption by approximately 85% compared to a traditional hotel and will also produce its own energy.
The hotel will be built in northern Norway near the Svartisen glacier. The hotel’s circular body will extend from the shoreline by the foot of the Almlifjellet Mountain and into the waters of the Holandsfjorden fjord. The design is inspired by a “fiskehjell” (an A-shaped wooden structure for drying fish) and a “rorbu” (a traditional type of seasonal house used by fisherman).
Courtesy Snøhetta
The rorbu inspiration can be seen in the hotel’s supporting structure, which is built from weather-resistant wooden poles that rise from several meters below the surface of the fjord. The poles ensure the building creates a minimal footprint in the environment. The poles also create a wooden boardwalk for visitors that can be used to store boats and kayaks, reducing the need for other storage structures.
Hotel rooms, restaurants, and terraces have been specifically places to maximize use of the sun’s energy throughout the day and the seasons. The hotel’s façades protect against insolation from the sun in the summer while the large windows allow for maximum insolation during the winter months. This eliminates the need for artificial cooling in the summer and drastically reduces the need for artificial heating in the winter. The roof also makes use of the sun’s energy as it is clad with Norwegian solar panels produced with clean hydro energy. Additionally, materials with low embodied energy will be used to reach the Powerhouse standard.
“Building in such a precious environment comes with some clear obligations in terms of preserving the natural beauty and the fauna and flora of the site,” says Kjetil Trædal Thorsen, Founding Partner, Snøhetta. “Building an energy positive and low-impact hotel is an essential factor to create a sustainable tourist destination respecting the unique features of the plot; the rare plant species, the clean waters and the blue ice of the Svartisen glacier.”
In order to be considered a Powerhouse plus house, over the course of a 60-day period a building must generate more renewable energy than the total amount of energy it would require to sustain daily operations and to build, produce materials, and demolish the building.
*Powerhouse is a collaboration between Snøhetta, Entra, Skanska, the ZERO Emission Resource Organization, and Asplan Viak for building plus houses.
Courtesy Snøhetta
Courtesy Snøhetta
Related Stories
Sponsored | Steel Buildings | Jan 25, 2022
Multifamily + Hospitality: Benefits of building in long-span composite floor systems
Long-span composite floor systems provide unique advantages in the construction of multi-family and hospitality facilities. This introductory course explains what composite deck is, how it works, what typical composite deck profiles look like and provides guidelines for using composite floor systems. This is a nano unit course.
Coronavirus | Jan 20, 2022
Advances and challenges in improving indoor air quality in commercial buildings
Michael Dreidger, CEO of IAQ tech startup Airsset speaks with BD+C's John Caulfield about how building owners and property managers can improve their buildings' air quality.
Adaptive Reuse | Dec 16, 2021
An adaptive reuse of a historic building in San Francisco was worth the wait
A five-year-long project included extensive restoration.
Giants 400 | Dec 3, 2021
2021 Hotel Sector Giants: Top architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S. hospitality sector
Gensler, Jacobs, Suffolk Construction, and WATG top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest hotel sector architecture, engineering, and construction firms, as reported in the 2021 Giants 400 Report.
Hotel Facilities | Nov 3, 2021
California’s Hotel del Coronado is finishing up the final piece to its Master Plan
A 75-residence Shore House will be family oriented and meeting commodious.
Hotel Facilities | Oct 28, 2021
At the end of Q3 2021, Dallas tops the U.S. hotel construction pipeline
The top 25 U.S. markets account for 33% of all pipeline projects and 37% of all rooms in the U.S. hotel construction pipeline.
Hotel Facilities | Oct 13, 2021
World’s first net zero carbon hotel launches in West London
The hotel is located in Chiswick, West London.
Hotel Facilities | Oct 12, 2021
510-room Hyatt Place Hotel completes in Chelsea
The project broke ground in January 2019.
Hotel Facilities | Sep 27, 2021
New resort will be carved directly into a mountainside
The project is is located in western Saudi Arabia.
Hotel Facilities | Sep 22, 2021
Will hotel developers finally embrace modular construction?
Last May, MiTek, a construction software and building services company that’s part of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate, formed a partnership with Danny Forster & Architecture to promote modular design and construction.