Coming up: UAE's largest aquarium... click to know where

Abu Dhabi Municipality and Al Barakah International Investments held a groundbreaking ceremony for a Dh850 million new tourist and entertainment destination.

The project, which is to be built under a "musathaha" agreement or Build Operate Transfer agreement, will include a 5,000 metre aquarium (UAE's largest), a 98-berth marina suitable for mini yachts, cafes and restaurants, and three or four storeys of furnished apartments which will be available for rent.

Musabbah Al Marar, acting director general of Abu Dhabi Municipality, said the ambitious project named ‘Al Qana’ is a practical implementation of the civic body’s strategy to provide best in class services, recreational and housing facilities in alignment with the Abu Dhabi Comprehensive Master  Development Plan and Abu Dhabi Vision 2030.

The project will come up in an area spanning 150,000 square meters and is scheduled to be completed in the second quarter of 2018. The new Abu Dhabi project will be located on 2.4 kilometres of waterside land in the Maqta area  and is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2018.

The developers said that they leased 2.5 kilometres of land from Abu Dhabi Municipality to construct the project which is being done on a built operate and transfer basis.

"The tourist market is expanding in Abu Dhabi with what Etihad Airways is doing. This is one of the main projects that will put Abu Dhabi on the tourism map," said Moataz Mashal, Managing Director of Al Barakah International Investments. ‘’This is one of the main projects which will start putting Abu Dhabi on that map."