The new Centre Bancaire Kirchberg of the BNP Paribas Group in Luxembourg has three buildings with a total surface area of 99,000 square metres. In addition to the existing BGL BNP Paribas head-office building, it contains two new buildings: a 6-storey building on avenue J.F. Kennedy and a 14-storey building on rue Edward Steichen. These two buildings share a common foundation that sits between avenue J.F. Kennedy and rue E. Steichen and are also linked to the head-office building. The site is now a work space for nearly 3,500 employees.

Carlo Thill, Country Head of the BNP Paribas Group in Luxembourg, explains: “When works began in March 2013, the BNP Paribas Group in Luxembourg had several central buildings, not including some 40 branches in the BGL BNP Paribas network. The goal of the construction project was to strengthen collaboration and synergies between employees from the majority of the Group's entities by bringing them together at the Kirchberg site. This large-scale project attests to the BNP Paribas Group's solid position in the Luxembourg economy and illustrates the Group's commitment to the development of the country's financial centre.” 

The buildings were designed by M3 Architectes in collaboration with the Goblet Lavandier engineering office. The common green spaces between the three buildings have been designed in line with the head-office gardens created by landscape architect Jacques Wirtz. Some 50 companies were involved in the construction of the new site, most of them based in Luxembourg and the Greater Region.

The BNP Paribas Group in Luxembourg designed the project with a firm emphasis on environmental respect. Particular attention was paid to eco-responsible technologies and minimal consumption of energy and natural resources. The Group is aiming for triple environmental certification at the European level, with DGNB in Germany, BREEAM in the UK and HQE in France. The project has already obtained the "HQE Exceptionnel" certification for the construction phase, which confirms a building's compliance with performance standards outlined in the 2012 technical framework for certification in the following four categories: energy, environment, health and comfort.

Dates and key figures for the new Centre Bancaire Kirchberg

• Total surface area (head office and new buildings): 99,000 square metres
• Surface area of the two new buildings: 52,000 square metres, plus 18,000 square metres as part of a third building for which the foundation and basements alone have been built as of yet
• Beginning of earthworks: 11 March 2013
• First stone laid: 15 October 2013
• First installations: December 2015
• Final installations: April 2016
• Head architect: M3 Architectes and the Goblet Lavandier engineering office
• Floors: 14 and 6
• Workstations: 3,000 in the new buildings
• Employees on-site: nearly 3,500 (including the head office)
• Budget: 200 million euros