In the mid-80s, developers turned a massive former dock in downtown Oslo into a thriving work and leisure complex. Today 12 million visitors a year still flock to Aker Brygge, an impressive figure for a country with a population of just under five million. Spread throughout the campus are about 70 shops and 40 bars and restaurants, as well as chunks of residential and office space. While various cultural attractions have drawn in the crowds, the area has also attracted large national and international corporations looking for space and a prestigious address.

A quarter of a century on and the surrounding area has caught up. For the past few years Oslo's entire waterfront has been a blur of construction activity, from Filipstad in the west to Sørenga and Ekeberg in the east. The Tjuvholmen neighbourhood, on a peninsula across the inner harbour, is also undergoing its own massive office-and-residential development around the privately owned Astrup Fearnley Museum of Modern Art, currently under construction beneath a thicket of cranes and set to open next year.

Which is why Aker Brygge's majority owner, Norwegian Property (NPRO), is taking steps to recreate it for the next generation, with a makeover expected to cost €130m-€190m. "We are building on to the area and extending it. It is an opportunity for even more urban development, more offices and more retail," says NPRO chief executive Olav Line. "The project is in the start-up phase and we will start building in 2012."

A feature of the development plans will be outdoor spaces. "It will take it from the 1980s to today and will be somewhat reminiscent of small Italian piazzas, with plazas and an open-air feel," says Line. Building work is expected to take three or four years but will be done in stages in order to avoid closing down the whole area.

It's also planned that traditional brick buildings will be sensitively renovated, and that those erected in the past 25 years will get new, modern facades. The main entrance to Aker Brygge, for example - on the building closest to the city centre - will get an eye-catching glass front.

The improvements are designed not just to reinforce Aker Brygge's identity but also to make it the most attractive place in Oslo for office space, according to Line. NPRO has pledged to establish dedicated lobbies and corporate entrances for office premises, and is planning a new food court to be used as a staff restaurant for tenants' employees.

"The sea will be brought much closer to the buildings, making it truly a waterside and not just a dockside concept," adds Line. This time around there's also an environmental angle, and it's anticipated that a new seawater-based power plant, built to generate energy for most of the large buildings owned by NPRO, will slash energy consumption, reducing the area's CO2 emissions by 75%.

Line says that the redevelopment plans will also take advantage of the surroundings and the light. The central square, Bryggetorget, currently seen as dull and nondescript, will be converted into what it's hoped will be a vibrant marketplace. The idea is that cultural activities will give the area more of a party atmosphere, as well as providing room for calm and reflection.

Tjuvholmen, due for completion in 2014, is not just a rival in terms of office spaces. The Astrup Fearnley museum has been designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano, which would guarantee it attention even if its roof didn't appear to slope into the sea.

The Tjuvholmen complex features offices, some of Oslo's most expensive residential units, restaurants and art galleries, along with a new landmark tower currently under construction.

But in cultural terms, Aker Brygge is by no means being frozen out.

In fact the government recently agreed that from 2017, Norway's new National Museum will open nearby, bringing the exhibits of several existing museums into one location. These include the National Gallery, the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design, the Museum of Contemporary Art and the National Museum of Architecture. Anne-Louise Fogtmann