A landmark destined for north Kent’s skyline could arrive more than two years behind schedule after organisers admitted funding problems.

The Ebbsfleet Landmark Project, which will bring either a 50-metre white horse, a tower of stacked cubes or a steel "nest" to land next to the A2, was originally earmarked for completion in 2010. But now organisers are pinning their hopes on a finish date closer to the 2012 Olympics because of difficulties in raising the cash.

Backers say the £2 million scheme, dubbed the Angel of the South, will make north Kent the talk of the country and even the world.

Its commissioners, Eurostar, London and Continental Railways (LCR) and Land Securities, the developers of the Ebbsfleet Valley, have stumped up half the total, but have said the recession is making the rest hard to come by.

An LCR spokesman said the economic downturn was making investment in the project a less attractive option for potential sponsors. But he denied organisers had ever set a completion date in stone.

"We never said anything about the time table," he said. "It’s difficult to put a timescale on it because something like this has never been done before. The Olympics is there and a mile stone and if we can do it in time for that all well and good but this is something that is going to be here for generations. It will be around for a very long time and we want to do it right."

He added: "We won’t make any compromise on how we do the project. We want to do it properly."

The project’s selection panel whittled down artists’ proposals from five to three in October last year, leaving designs by Turner Prize winner Mark Wallinger, Daniel Buren and Richard Deacon still in the running.

The winning artist was due to be announced at Swan Valley Community School on Tuesday, but organisers delayed the verdict for a week because they were unable to arrange for the model, the artist, or any representative to be there.

The announcement is now expected to be made at the school, in Southfleet Road, Swanscombe, on Tuesday, February 10.