Work begins on new EPO building
Construction of a new European Patent Office (EPO) building in the Netherlands has officially begun.
The occasion was marked yesterday, June 25, with a foundation stone-laying ceremony at the future site.
The new building, in Rijswijk, will be 80,000 square meters and house more than 1,700 staff.
EPO president Benoît Battistelli was joined by Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, to mark the occasion.
With a budget of more than €205 million ($340 million) and self-financed by the EPO, the building will be the largest single investment by the EPO in the Netherlands in the office’s 40-year history.
It will replace the existing 86 metre-high tower, which opened in 1972.
"As an architectural landmark, the new main building will be the visual expression of our continued commitment to the Netherlands," said Battistelli during the ceremony.
“It will also be a bold example of modern architecture, reflecting the EPO’s mission to foster innovation, and illustrating the EPO’s role at the heart of innovation in Europe”.
