China building Great Wheel of China – 680 ft Ferris Wheel

Construction began Monday on what was expected to be the world’s tallest Ferris wheel, which will soar 680 feet over the Chinese capital when it is complete, state media reported.

The $99 million Beijing Great Wheel was supposed to be open to tourists at next summer’s Olympic Games, but the project had been delayed by a number of design changes, the official Xinhua News Agency said, citing the Great Wheel Corp.

His Singapore-based company is jointly developing the project with Chaoyang Park authorities.

The rumored completion date is 2009, although none has been confirmed. The structure was designed by the same Dutch company that worked on the 443-foot London Eye, which was the largest wheel in the world when it was built in 1999.

China already has a Ferris wheel taller than the London Eye. The 525-foot-tall Star of Nanchang opened in 2006 in southern Jiangxi province.

Bollen’s assistant, Janet Li, told The Associated Press he was out of the office and could not be reached, and that she was not authorized to release information about the project.

The Ferris wheel was being built in eastern Beijing’s Chaoyang Park, which is also the venue for beach volleyball in the Aug. 8-24 Olympics. It will have 48 air-conditioned compartments that can carry up to 1,920 passengers, Xinhua said, citing Great Wheel Chairman Florian Bollen. On a good day even the Great Wall is expected to be visible in the mountains to Beijing’s north.

“The wheel itself is a nice add-on to the city. It’s a new icon for the city,” Great Wheel Corp Chief Executive Officer Stephan Matter told Reuters ahead of the ground-breaking ceremony.

The wheel will stand in eastern Beijing’s Chaoyang Park, where beach volleyball events will take place at next year’s Olympics, and have far greater capacity than the London Eye, Matter said.

“The capsule in London caters for 25. Ours will cater for 40 people. It’s like a little bus. It’s 18 tonnes heavy. It’s like your living room,” he added.

Costing a total of around 200 million euros (139 million pounds), tickets will go for about 100 yuan (6 pounds) a head, Matter said, though final prices have yet to be decided.

“The Beijing one will be very affordable,” he added.

The experience will be like flying, said chairman Florian Bollen, whose company is also involved in the Singapore wheel.

Chinese officials denied the wheel would be covered in lead paint and be constructed with the use of child labor.