Gulf Construction Online - Oman’s expo centre all set for launch

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Oman’s expo centre all set for launch

01 September 2016

The first phase of Oman’s new convention and exhibition centre will be launched by the middle of this month, a report said.

The first phase includes exhibition halls, an energy centre and a car-park.

Designed by WATG, the Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre’s (OCEC) is being built at an estimated cost of $1.5 billion and will meet the US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (Leed) certification.

OCEC general manager Trevor McCartney was quoted by Times of Oman as saying that the new centre would reflect the warmth of Omani hospitality and the personality of the sultanate.

“It is our goal that every visitor and every delegate to the OCEC enjoys a peerless, memorable, one-of-a-kind experience,” he said.

The centre will have a 450-seat auditorium, 19 meeting rooms, a grand ballroom to seat up to 2,688 people theatre style or 1,200 for a banquet, a junior ballroom to seat up to 1,026 theatre style or 540 for a banquet.

OCEC is set within the purpose-built precinct in Madinat Al Irfan, owned and developed by Omran.

The precinct will include four luxury hotels. Work is in progress on the five-star JW Marriott and the four-star Crowne Plaza, both of which are set to open in 2017.

There will also be a 127,000-sq-m shopping mall, a business park and a variety of leisure offerings.

Leveraging its 22,000 sq m of flexible exhibition space and its state-of-the-art facilities, OCEC will help local shows grow and achieve their full potential in the international arena, he said.