The apartment building site at Phoebe Street in Salford Quays was quickly engulfed in fire and more than 30 homes had to be evacuated as the blaze took hold.
The £10m mixed-use scheme consists of a Morrisons supermarket and 79 new homes. It was about to be handed over by the Trafford-based contractor Russells Construction.
A spokeswoman for Russells said only the apartments section of the site had been affected and the Morrisons store has not been damaged by the blaze.
More than 50 firefighters battled the blaze in Phoebe Street, Ordsall, which could be seen from miles away.
How the finished project was expected to look