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Shopping centre group Westfield said it had been given the go ahead by the UK government and a number of Olympic bodies for its 180-acre Stratford City retail and leisure development in east London. The £1.5bn (EUR 1.9bn) Stratford City scheme promises to be one of the UK's largest urban regeneration schemes and will act as a gateway to London's Olympic park at the 2012 Olympics. The scheme is due for completion in 2011.

Stratford City will be one of the best connected places in the UK, Westfield saisd. At the hub of two of the busiest underground lines, an expanded Docklands Light Railway network and the new international high speed rail link to continental Europe, and ultimately Crossrail. The new development will also be built to some of the highest environmental standards applied to a major development in Britain. A Combined Cooling and Heating Plant (CCHP) will provide 75% of the development's energy requirements. Water conservancy, use of sustainable materials and a commitment to recycling are key features of the development, the company said.

'The £1.5bn Stratford City retail and leisure development has both scale and significance, serving as a gateway to the Olympic Park and delivering real momentum to the regeneration of east London. We anticipate significant transformation flowing from the 2012 Olympics with Stratford City becoming the metropolitan centre of east London,' said Frank Lowy, chairman of Westfield Group.

Westfield Stratford City, the 175,000 m² retail and leisure project, will be anchored by John Lewis, Waitrose and Marks & Spencer. The development will feature around 300 local, national and international fashion, home and lifestyle brands, with leisure and entertainment facilities.