Local firm Arabtec Construction has been awarded the contract to build and operate the UAE Pavilion at the Expo 2020 site, according to a statement from the contractor.

The pavilion is expected to cover up to 15,000 square metres and will include numerous exhibition areas, an auditorium, food and beverage outlets and VIP lounges. It will be located facing Al-Wasl Plaza, which lies at the centre of the 2 million-sq-m exhibition zone.

The UAE’s National Media Council (NMC) selected Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava’s falcon-inspired design for the scheme in May last year.

The design was approved by a jury including representatives from the NMC, the Expo 2020 Dubai team, Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar) and Dubai-based developer Emaar Properties.

Masdar is the development manager for the project.

There will be other pavilions built by UAE clients at the Expo site. In March 2016, organisers announced that the UK’s Foster+Partners and Grimshaw Architects, and Denmark’s Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) had won a competition to design three of the Expo 2020 Dubai pavilions. Further details of the Sustainability Pavilion were announced at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week in January.

The Expo site is one of Dubai’s most high-profile projects. Dubai says it will award 47 construction contracts worth AED11bn ($3bn) in 2017.