A £300 million new National Opera House is currently under construction in the harbour area of Bjorvika in Oslo.

The project has been billed to be the biggest boost for Norwegian culture since the building of the medieval Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim. Construction started in February 2003, and the completion date is estimated to be September 2008.

The building comprises of three main elements: front, back and the "roofscape", which describes the building's sloping roof which rises out of the fjord. A considerable part of the Opera house will be located in or under the sea, and a special underwater ship barrier has been created to minimise the risk of collision in the busy shipping harbour.

12,000m² of steel sheet piling has been used around the perimeter of the site to create a stable and dry working environment.