The roof is currently under construction, in a curved shape that is reminiscent of oriental calligraphy as well as a large sand dune, a wide ocean wave or a whale fin.

"The architectural concept of the new fish market is based on inspiration and interpretation of the qualities of light and shadow in the traditions of Omani, with natural ventilation and light-flooded appearance", says Kjetil Trædal Thorsen, director and founding partner of Snøhetta.

The fact that aluminum reflects light so well favors iridescent lighting effects, coupled with the necessary shading function. Both are achieved in a construction that is as light as it is light, which aluminum is only possible due to its low weight.

"A heavier construction made of other metal or wood could never create this elegance and at the same time guarantee high functionality, low maintenance and long life, corrosion-resistant even in the salt water climate on the shores of the Persian Gulf. And yet, in order to create this brilliant architecture, 12 mm thick aluminum shates are used, and we use 180 tons alone, ”says Reinhard Pritzlaff, who is responsible for technical application development and customer service in the General Engineering hydro business unit.

The Shate sheets were three-dimensionally formed at Centraalstaal in the Netherlands and finally shipped to Oman for assembly.

Part of a large construction plan

The Sultanate of Oman in the Horn of the Persian Gulf has decided on a comprehensive development plan to transform its Matrah metropolitan area into a state-of-the-art metropolis, essentially through 24 breathtaking construction projects. Snøhetta was selected to plan two of the Matrah projects: the Muscat government fish market and the vegetable market.

The required quality in architecture, design and function suggest aluminum as a material. The Oman campaign is also part of a construction boom in the entire Gulf region.

Snøhetta is already a partner of Hydro at Powerhouse, a cooperation to create buildings that generate more energy than they consume. Two powerhouse projects are currently underway: a new office building in Trondheim will be the world's northernmost energy-positive building, and an existing building near Oslo will be the first in the world to be refurbished to generate more energy than it needs.

New applications for aluminum shates

When it comes to high quality in architecture, choice of materials and construction, this opens up a lot of possible applications for aluminum. "This is a target market for us, here we want to gain even more acceptance for our premium shate," says Evelyne Nguyen, sales manager of the Hydro business unit General Engineering.

So far, Shate has been typically used for the construction of silos and other industrial equipment, as well as for large, but lightweight components of commercial vehicles, ships and, where further growth is expected, railroad trains.

& nbsp; "Easily mouldable and then lifelong stable, thanks to the brilliant surface qualities with which we can serve, aluminum shates allow the implementation of diverse, elegant concepts even with large spans for outstandingly attractive architecture, and with the least possible Cost of materials, ”says Reinhard Pritzlaff. In addition, once the metal has been used and dismantled, it can easily be completely recycled.