Dezeen Wire: plans for branches of the Guggenheim, Louvre and other museums in Abu Dhabi by leading architects have been dealt a blow by delays to a key construction contract, according to a report in today's Financial Times.

The article claims that a government spending review has led to the cancellation of the concrete works tender for Frank Gehry's Guggenheim and could affect the other proposed buildings in the Saadiyat Island development including a branch of the Louvre by Jean Nouvel, national museum by Norman Foster, maritime museum by Tadao Ando and performing arts centre by Zaha Hadid.

The first buildings were due for completion in just over two years time but the developer, the Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC), has already announced that the estimated delivery has been put back at least a year. Officials from the TDIC, Louvre and Guggenheim have all claimed that the projects are continuing as planned but news of the spending review has cast doubt over the validity of these claims.

See our previous stories on the launch of the Saadiyat Island development here, Frank Gehry's design for the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi Museum here and Jean Nouvel's proposal for the Louvre here.

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