by Mohamed M. Elbatran, Architect,
Deputy General Manager HAZ MARBLE
On Saturday, 1 November 2025, the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) was officially inaugurated on the Giza necropolis plateau, next to the Giza pyramids.
The Grand Egyptian Museum, described as the ‘Fourth Pyramid,’ is currently the largest archaeological museum in the world dedicated to a single civilisation, occupying an area of approximately 490,000 m². It is estimated that it will receive around 5 million visitors each year.
Natural stone has been the undisputed star of this megaproject. The complexity of its execution has required the participation of highly qualified companies.
Stone information
-HMMJV (HAZ MARBLE EGYPT LLC and HAZ MERMER )supplied all fixing through HAZ METAL and in some areas where mega steel substructure was required, procurement through qualified local suppliers working under HMMJV.
-The project team specified mainly local materials, Verdi Ghazal (Egyptian Granite) for the flooring, Teriesta/Sinai Pearl (Egyptian Limestone) Mainly for the cladding and the landscape cladding & flooring works. Black Aswan (Egyptian Granite) for the vanity tops.
- MARMONIL, owner of the quarries, supplied a total of 70,000 m² of these materials for the interior of the museum.The material for the 2 km bridge connecting the museum to the pyramids was also supplied by MARMONIL (41,000 m²).
-Imported materials (Double Black & Galaxy) were used in a small scale for certain areas over the project.
-HMMJV has the largest portion of stone delivery/installation on site.
-Several other companies delivered and installed small stone quantities to the project.
-HAZ Technical Office was responsible for extracting the scope of work from the BIM model and used the extracted data to create shop drawings covering their scope of work.
-HAZ prepared the technical notes for the works executed on steel structure and/or any special cases in their scope of works, also some of HMMJV drawings were used by other stone subcontractors.
-HAZ supplied and applied the cut to size where needed on the project and the supervision of the onsite operations.
-Special challenges in the project. Installing the stone works over the inclined steel structure (Main building north facades consisting of just concrete beams, HMMJV created the substructure design, delivered and installed the steel substructure, and cladded mechanically with Teriesta stone on the executed steel structure), executing the stilettos (3 mega structure pipes where provided and HMMJV created the substructure design and installed in between and the 3 pipes were changed to a 3 faces cone 2 of them are cladded mechanically with Teriesta stone), and perfecting the alignment of the facades was from the hardest challenges, installation of 1494mm x 640mm thickness 110mm Verdi granite stone on post tension precast concrete beams at the Main Building Grand stairs), cladding of the hanging Obelisk with engraved double black stone, etc...
-HMMJV designed, procured and installed the stone including the steel substructure for the entire site (except other subcontractors' small scopes) with a total of approximately 190,000 m2/for the entire project.
Design
The building design was by architects Róisín Heneghan and Shi-Fu Peng, and their company Heneghan Peng Architects of Ireland. Heneghan Peng, Buro Happold, Arup and ACE Consulting Engineers (Moharram and Bakhoum) collaborated on the design of the building. The landscape and site master plan was designed by West 8, the exhibition masterplan, exhibition design, and museology were led by Atelier Brückner.
February 2010, Egypt's Ministry of Culture had signed a contract with a joint venture of Hill and EHAF Consulting Engineers to provide project management services during the design and construction of the Grand Egyptian Museum.
* The Client (Ministry of State for Antiquities, represented by the minister, Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) and Engineering Authority of Armed Forces (EAAF)) represented by:
- Major General Atef Moftah – General Director of Grand Egyptian Museum Project and Surrounding area / Director of Engineering Committee of Engineering Authority of Armed Forces
* The Contractor (Besix-Orascom) represented by:
- Mr. Joris De Kinder – Project Director.
- Mr. George Kyrillos – Dep. Project Director.
* The Consultant (PMC is a JV between Ehaf and HILL international) represented by:
- Mr. Huibert Vos - Project Manger
- Mr. Ayman Heikal – Dep. Project Manger
* The Subcontractor (HMMJV is a JV between HAZ MARBLE EGYPT LLC and HAZ MERMER
SANAYI VE TECARET A.S. ABUDHABI) represented by:
- Mr. Abit Yesilkaya. – CEO of HAZ Group / Project Director
- Mr. Mohamed ElBatran – Dep. Project Director
