The Torre Glòries, formerly known as Torre Agbar (), is a 38-story skyscraper located between Avinguda Diagonal and Carrer Badajoz, near Plaça de les Glòries Catalanes, which marks the gateway to the new technological district of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It was designed by French architect Jean Nouvel in association with the Spanish firm b720 Fermín Vázquez Arquitectos and built by Dragados. The Torre Glòries is located in the Poblenou neighbourhood of Barcelona and it was originally named after its owners, the Agbar Group, a holding company whose interests include the Barcelona water company Aigües de Barcelona. The tower is 144.44 m high with a diameter of 39 m. It has a total of , of which are offices, technical facilities, services, including an auditorium, and parking space. It cost €130 million to build. It opened in June 2005 and was officially opened by King Juan Carlos I on 16 September 2005. It is one in a collection of high-tech architecture examples in Barcelona. The building was owned by the multinational group Agbar, which has its corporate headquarters in the building and which takes up most of the floors, leasing the remainder. The Agbar Tower was acquired in March 2010 for 165 million euros, after reaching an agreement with its former owner, the investment group Azurelau. Azurelau had previously bought the property in mid-2007. The purchase price was not disclosed. By 2017 it was purchased by Merlin Properties real estate group and it was renamed as Torre Glòries after the name of the adjacent square. Design According to Jean Nouvel, Torre Agbar is intended to recall the shape of a geyser rising into the air. It was inspired by Montserrat, a mountain near Barcelona. In an interview, he described the tower as having a phallic character. As a result of its unusual shape, the building is known by several nicknames, such as el supositori ("the suppository"), l'obús ("the shell") and some more scatological ones. It is also somewhat similar in shape to Sir Norman Foster's 30 St. Mary Axe in London, often called "the Gherkin". The Agbar Tower measures in height and consists of 38 storeys, including four underground levels. Its design combines a number of different architectural concepts, resulting in a striking structure built with reinforced concrete, covered with a facade of glass, and over 4,500 window openings cut out of the structural concrete. The building stands out in Barcelona;