09 January,2013 07:02 AM IST | | Agencies
Abu Dhabi Tourism Development and Investment Company said construction would start immediately with the aim of opening the museum in 2015, three years later than originally planned.
Art in the making: French architect Jean Nouvel poses in front of a model of the Louvre Abu Dhabi art gallery. File Pic
The contract was awarded to an Arabtec-led joint venture with Spanish company Constructora San Jose SA and Oger Abu Dhabi LLC "following a competitive tendering process," it said in a statement.
"The contract, valued at 2.4 billion dirhams (around $654 million), signifies a major milestone in the progress of the Louvre Abu Dhabi," it added.
Oil-rich Gulf emirate Abu Dhabi has paid around $1.3 billion to use the Louvre name for 30 years and to tap the renowned Paris museum for artworks and expertise during this period.
The deal had stirred a debate in the French art world with critics saying the Louvre is selling its soul as they question Abu Dhabi's treatment of dissidents and immigrant workers employed in the construction of the project.
The Abu Dhabi Louvre building has been designed by French architect Jean Nouvel. Abu Dhabi has launched an ambitious development plan, Abu Dhabi 2030, aimed at modernising the emirate and diversifying its economy.
64,000u00a0Area of the Louvre museum in Abu Dhabi in square metres including 9,200 square metres of art spaceu00a0
