Construction on a major part of Dundee’s £80 million V&A museum has begun.
Work has started on the creation of a cofferdam in the Tay, which is a temporary, watertight enclosure that will be pumped dry to keep the water away while the flagship museum is constructed.
Councillor Ken Guild, Dundee City Council leader, said: “We are off and running work on the cofferdam has begun.”
It came after a private meeting of the V&A project management board to discuss the latest developments.
The board is made up of members of the SNP administration, the Labour opposition on the council, officers from the local authority and members of Dundee Development Ltd, whose job it is to oversee the project.
Last month, after almost seven years of planning and following several major challenges including a massive spike in its budget the project was officially launched by the banks of the Tay.
Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, who designed the museum, joined Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop and representatives from the V&A, Dundee City Council and BAM Construction, the main contractors, to cut the first turf.
The administration hopes the completion of Kengo Kuma’s design will help create hundreds of jobs and inject millions of pounds into the economy.
Mr Guild is confident that the project will attract major investment into Dundee and he said he was delighted that the actual work had begun.
He said: “Construction of V&A Dundee will give our economy a significant boost and help to create hundreds of jobs.
“The building project itself will also bring considerable attention to Dundee.”
Doug Keillor, Scotland BAM Construction regional director, said the first pile was driven on Wednesday.
He said: “The purpose of the cofferdam is to allow us to reclaim a section of the River Tay to allow us to construct the new V&A which partly overhangs the river.”
The museum should open in 2018.