Local developer Aldar Properties has awarded the local/UK Al-Futtaim Carillion an estimated AED120m ($32m) contract to build a new Ikea furniture store on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.

The 29,642 square metre retail outlet will be Ikea’s largest store in the Middle East. It will have a total sales area of 18,100 sq m, a 2,100 sq m restaurant with 600 seats, and a parking structure with 1,563 parking spaces.

Other companies that submitted bids for the contract include the local Alec, the local/Australian Al-Habtoor Leighton Group, the local ETA Ascon and Bam of the Netherlands.

Ikea expects that about 1.3 million people will visit the new store during its first year of operations.

Ikea already has one outlet in Abu Dhabi at the Marina Mall.

The consultant for the new store is the local Brewer Smith Brewer Gulf. The quantity surveyor is UK-based Cyril Sweett.

Aldar is also building a 300,000 sq m shopping mall on Yas Island. It is being built by Aldar Besix, a joint venture of Aldar and Belgium’s Besix (MEED 13:1:08).