Swimming with sharks may be possible by the end of next year when the €15.5 million national aquarium is expected to be completed in Qawra.
The aquarium, which has been promised in one form or another since 1993, will contain 26 water tanks displaying a variety of fish.
The largest tank, 12 metres in diameter, will be tunnel-shaped to allow people to walk through it and see two sharks.
Private investor Marine Aquatic Ltd, which would be running the marine park, was working towards introducing a facility that would allow experienced divers to swim with the sharks, architect Kenneth Borg said.
He was speaking at the formal start of construction works on the aquarium. Excavation works started last month.
The private investor, which won a government tender to design and build the attraction, will fork out about €9 million of the costs.
The investor, a consortium of partners that includes Ebcon, Elbros and Marinescape, will also be running and maintaining the aquarium for the next 50 years under a government concession.
The attraction will cover an area of more than 20,000 square metres and, apart from the aquarium, will include a public garden and a car park. The aquarium itself will be spread over 3,200 square metres and will have 26 tanks containing about 400 cubic metres of water.
The public will walk into the ground floor of the aquarium, shaped like a star fish to retain the maritime theme, to a level where there will be restaurants and ticketing booths. From there they go downstairs where the water tanks will be housed. Each tank will display a range of fish in backdrops that recreate the feel of various parts of Malta’s seabed.
The old car park in the Fra Ben area, that took 88 cars, will be replaced by a two-storey facility that will accommodate up to 160 vehicles. One storey will be at road level and the other underground.
The project will not impact public access to the popular beach in the area that will be connected to the promenade for easier access.
Tourism Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism, Mario de Marco said the project would not only benefit the Qawra area but would be a tourism asset for the entire country. The Malta Tourism Authority’s chief executive officer, Josef Formosa Gauci said the MTA got involved in the project because it believed in improving the tourism product.
Asked whether the government had spent money on consultancy fees, he said that consultants were engaged due to the complexity of the project. However, it was not the place to divulge such information and, in any case, he did not have the figures with him.
Timeline
• 1993: As the old national pool in Marsascala becomes redundant the idea is flouted of turning it into an aquarium. But the locality is too remote and Qawra is suggested.
• 1996: An international call for offers is launched but soon discontinued as the project is not feasible.
• May 2000: The transport authority issues a project document about the construction of the aquarium.
• December 2003: The government invites prospective developers to register their interest in the leisure project.
• July 2004: It emerges that only one company expressed interest. It was not allowed to submit documentation because the deadline expired.
• October 2007: The tourism authority announces it will develop the marine park as it could not attract private investors.
• November 2007: The planning authority board approves the full development application for the construction of the marine aquarium.
• September 2008: The government announces the allocation of EU funds to invest in tourism projects that will include the aquarium.
•January 2009: The tourism authority issues the tender for the €7.5 million project.
• November 2010: The Department of Contracts announces that the tender was awarded.
• August 2011: Negotiations on the aquarium are concluded.
• October 2011: Works start.