LEED Platinum in India

A business center in India has become the first project to receive a Platinum rating under version 2 of the LEED® Rating System. Located in Hyderabad, in the southeastern state of Andhra Pradesh, the 17,000 ft2 (1,600 m2) Sohrabji Godrej Green Business Centre is over 90% complete and expected to open this month.

Designed by Karan Grover of Karan Grover & Associates, based in Vadodara (Baroda), Gujarat, the building is owned by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). It will house a 3,500 ft2 (325 m2) technology center to exhibit emerging green technologies, a 3,500 ft2 (325 m2) seminar hall with a 300-person capacity, a 1,000 ft2 (95 m2) information center, meeting rooms, and office space for 29 people. Funded through a public-private partnership between U.S. Agency for International Development and CII, with contributions from the Godrej Corporation and the state of Andhra Pradesh, the Green Business Centre is expected to serve as a hub of environmental and energy-related activity in the country.