The official opening of the Louvre Abu Dhabi museum has been pushed back to 2017 due to pending construction work, it has been reported.

Speaking to Reuters, three sources have said that there is work outstanding on the $650 million project, which was originally scheduled to open in 2012. That target was pushed back to the second half of 2016, the chairman of the state-owned Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC) said last year.

But a further delay is expected, according to press reports.

“First, the museum buildings have to be completed and delivered and then the opening (must take place), which is now some time in 2017,” a source close to the project told Reuters.

“There is some work to be done – interiors, testing which are critical as the commissioning takes place.”

Two other sources also confirmed that the opening has been postponed to an unspecified date next year. All three declined to be identified, as project details remain private and confidential.

TDIC declined to comment when contacted by staging.bigprojectme.com/.

In January 2016, officials said that the Louvre Abu Dhabi would be completed this year.

Construction works that had already been completed at that time included the museum’s ‘rain of light’ dome, as envisioned by architect Jean Nouvel, and 30,000sqm of natural stone paving.

The Louvre Abu Dhabi construction contract was awarded to an Arabtec-led joint venture with Constructora San Jose and Oger Abu Dhabi in 2013.

Once completed, the museum will feature 9,200 square metres of display space.

A building boom in the UAE has resulted in bottlenecks being created, with some construction firms scrambling to find labour, supplies and financing to complete a large backlog of work.

TDIC is developing a cultural district in Abu Dhabi that will house the Louvre Abu Dhabi, Guggenheim Abu Dhabi and Zayed National Museum.