Construction work is set to begin next month on a new £97m visitor attraction in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Called Titanic Quarter, the project has been backed by the Stormont Executive, which has pledged to invest £43m towards the cost of the development.

UK-based exhibition designer Event Communications will be masterplanning the quarter's permanent Titanic Memorial Museum which will chart the history of the famous Atlantic liner and the city in which she was built.

It is expected that building work will be completed by 2012. Titanic Quarter Limited, which is heading the project, hopes that the site will attract up to 400,000 visitors a year.

James Alexander, chief executive of Event Communications, said: "This is terrific news for Belfast and offers a magnificent opportunity not only to anchor the regeneration of the wider Titanic Quarter but to boost the City's economy.

"Moreover, the project presents a platform from which we can commemorate and tell not just the Titanic story, but the story of Belfast and its industrial and economic history as one of the wealthiest European cities of the early 20th century.

Northern Ireland's tourism minister, Arlene Foster, welcomed the Executive’s decision to support Titanic Quarter Limited’s proposal for a Titanic Signature Project in Belfast.

She said: “At a time when the Northern Ireland construction industry is under significant pressure this project will deliver a much needed boost to the sector. At the project’s peak there will be some 600 workers on site.

“The Executive has agreed to offer up to £43.5m toward the £97million Titanic Quarter Limited proposal for a Titanic Signature Project.”

The remaining £53.5m required for the project is expected to come from Titanic Quarter Limited, which is heading the project, Belfast Harbour Commissioners and Belfast City Council.

Environment minister Arlene Foster added: “The Titanic Signature Project will bring the story of RMS Titanic back home to Belfast, where she and her sister ships were designed and built.

"It provides Belfast and Northern Ireland with a tremendous opportunity to develop an iconic, world class visitor destination, achieving international standout and delivering the economic and social benefits such a tourist attraction can bring.”

The Titanic/Maritime Heritage Signature Project is one of the Northern Ireland Tourist Board’s (NITB) five Signature Projects which were identified for their potential to create international stand out and world class excellence for Northern Ireland.