The award of the contract to build the AED1.4bn ($381m) City Centre Al-Jazira mall in Abu Dhabi has been delayed.

The award is understood to have been deferred to give time for telecoms utilities crossing the site on Abu Dhabi Island to be diverted.

An award had been expected in the third quarter of this year.

The mall is being developed by Dubai-based developer Majid al-Futtaim in partnership with the local Al-Jazira Sports & Cultural Club in the heart of Abu Dhabi, between Airport Road and Al-Muroor Road.

It will have 153 retail stores, a Carrefour hypermarket, a Magic Planet family entertainment destination, a fitness centre, as well as indoor and outdoor food and beverage outlets. The total leasable area is expected to be 80,500 square metres (sq m) within a built-up area of 215,000 sq m.

The local Dutch Foundation has already started working on the enabling package. The design consultant is CallisonRTKL, part of Netherlands headquartered Arcadis.

The City Centre Al-Jazira is part of Majid al-Futtaim’s announcement made in June 2016 to increase its total investment in the UAE by AED30bn by 2026, taking its total investment in the country to AED48bn.