Construction contract worth Dhs353m awarded for UAE pavilion at Expo 2020

Dubai contractor Arabtec Holding announced its construction unit has won a Dhs353m contract to build the UAE pavilion at the Expo 2020 site.

Arabtec Construction was awarded the contract from Abu Dhabi National Media Council, the company said in a bourse statement on Tuesday.

The UAE pavilion for Expo 2020 will be located opposite to the Al Wasl Plaza in the centre of the 4.38 square kilometre exhibition area.

It is set on an area of 15,000 square metres, with a built up area 19,200 sqm. It features a 2,000 sqm upper floor and a 662 sqm mezzanine area, with a plaza level and related facilities spread across 3,000 sqm.

The ground level includes a garden and car park spread across 13,300 sqm.

It is being designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, who won an international competition that took place over a seven-month period.

Inspired by a falcon in flight, the design expresses the expo theme – ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’.

Construction on the pavilion is scheduled to begin this month and it is scheduled for delivery in the last quarter of 2019, the statement said.

Arabtec Group CEO Hamish Tyrwhitt said: “The UAE pavilion project highlights our strategic focus on the UAE as our core market and also demonstrates our commitment to building our future through the development of social infrastructure.”

Preparations are underway to build the expo site in Dubai ahead of the six-month long event, which runs from October 2020 to April 2021.

The main site is divided into three thematic districts with the central hub – the Al Wasl Plaza – featuring a massive translucent dome.

Also see: In pics: Huge translucent dome to be part of Expo 2020 Dubai site

Last year, Expo 2020 Dubai awarded over 1,200 contracts worth $544.5m, and in January, officials confirmed that Dubai will award a further 47 construction contracts worth Dhs11bn ($3bn) to local and foreign companies this year.

Read more: Dubai to award $3bn construction contracts for Expo 2020

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