Dutch dredging group Royal Boskalis Westminster NV said on Monday it has received a letter of intent from Abu Dhabi Ports Company to build a new offshore port in Abu Dhabi in a deal worth 1.1 billion euros ($1.57 billion).

Boskalis said its share of the contract for the first construction phase of the offshore Khalifa Port came to about 670 million euros.

The world's largest dredger will carry out the project with its subsidiary in the Middle East, Archirodon, and a South Korean company identified only as Hyundai. Work will begin this month and is expected to last four and a half years.

'This project provides Boskalis with a good baseload utilisation of its jumbocutters for the coming four years,' Boskalis said in a statement. - Reuters