Changi Airport has inked a joint venture with CapitaMalls Asia to develop the much-touted Project Jewel, which will be the iconic centrepiece of the airport when it is ready in 2018.

Construction on the $1.47 billion mixed-use building designed by renowned architect Moshe Safdie will start in the second half of next year. Mr Safdie was also responsible for another Singapore icon - the Marina Bay Sands.

To be built on the 3.5-hectare surface car park in front of Terminal 1, Project Jewel will have five storeys above ground, and five basement storeys of retail and car park spaces.

The complex will have a total gross floor area of about 134,000 sq m, of which nearly 70 per cent will be retail space. The rest are for airport operations, attractions and a hotel.

In a joint statement on Friday, Changi Airport Group, which has a 51 per cent stake in the venture, and CapitaMalls Asia said the complex will feature leisure attractions and activities for the young and old, including a large-scale indoor garden with a 40-metre-high waterfall. Retail offerings will also come from both international players as well as homegrown names.

Project Jewel will also serve as a node to link terminals 1, 2 and 3 and the Changi Airport MRT station. In addition, it will have facilities for fly-cruise and fly-coach passengers, as well as training facilities and communal event spaces for the 32,000-strong airport community.

With 2,500 parking spaces, the basement car park will be three times as large as the current T1 car park.

T1 will also be expanded, with more space for meet-and-greet in the arrival hall, at the baggage claim section and for taxi bays.

Mr Lee Seow Hiang, chief executive officer of CAG, called Project Jewel a "significant game-changing project" for the group.

"In today's highly competitive landscape where airports around the world are actively competing for passengers' mindshare, we cannot stop innovating. Project Jewel will give us this additional edge," he said.

Mr Lim Beng Chee, chief executive officer of CapitaMalls Asia, said the locale, which will host more than 50 million passengers from 270 cities every year, will be an ideal platform for brands that are currently not in Singapore or Asia to set up shop here.

"We will leverage our experience in developing iconic shopping malls and integrated developments both in Singapore and around Asia, and our well-established network of international and local retailers to deliver a landmark project that will be the pride of Singapore," he said.