SWEDEN – The board of the Swedish Exhibition and Congress Centre (SECC) claims, when completed, its latest development will make it the largest hotel, exhibition and conference facility in Europe.
The development, to add a third tower and extend another at its attached Hotel Gothia Towers, was postponed in 2008 but placed back on track a year ago (April 2010).
The new tower and the extension, which is slated to be ready in the second half of 2014, will increase the number of rooms by more than 500 to a total of 1,200.
“The expansion will make us one of the absolute elite venues of the international meetings industry,” said Chairman of the Board, Roger Holtback. “The decision to invest billions of kronor in this project will mean that this will be by far the biggest investment the centre has made,” said Roger Holtback,
President and CEO of the SECC, Carin Kindbom, said the purpose of the development is to achieve strong growth on the meetings side. “We’ve enjoyed fantastic growth in this segment. In fact, 2010 was a record year with over 330,000 conference delegate days.”
“With one of the largest hotels in Europe as an integral part of our facility, we are looking to attract more conventions and more foreign visitors every year, something that will benefit all the hotels, restaurants, shops, transport companies and the like in Gothenburg.”
The Crown Tower, as the existing East Tower will be named after the addition of six more storeys, will be opened in summer 2013. In addition to some 50 exclusive rooms, the extension will also house a wellness centre with three pools, a gym, sauna and hammam. The third tower, will be 29 storeys high andhave over 450 rooms. The opening is expected to take place in the second half of 2014.
When complete, Hotel Gothia Towers will have 12 new meeting rooms with seven with panaoramic views.
Construction is scheduled to start in September 2011, about the same time as the Gothenburg Book Fair takes place.
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