Conference News Supplements Scotland Supplement | Page 8

8 Scotland TECA set for summer launch Scotland’s newest venue in Aberdeen, TECA, will be able to hold 12,500 delegates he Event Complex Aberdeen (TECA) is set to open its doors in 2019. The news followed on from the announcement that stand-up comedian Russell Howard will be the first entertainment act to book a show at the world-class venue. New computer-generated renderings of TECA have recently been released, including the concourse/entrance and the club lounge, following on from the images released in October of the arena and the restaurant. TECA arena, conference centre and exhibition building (part of the AECC project) and includes two on-site hotels, an energy centre, extensive landscaping and parking. The entire site is being built by Aberdeen City Council along with development partner Henry Boot Developments (HBD), and main contractor Robertson Group. TECA will provide a new facility for Scotland beside Aberdeen International Airport. The 12,500-capacity main arena will host conferences, exhibitions and music concerts, and is expected to attract major artists and events to the city. The facility will also boast three further conference/exhibition halls, four multi-purpose conference suites, and several meeting rooms. The interiors of the facility are being fitted out with progress on internal blockwork, metal stud partitions, and mechanical, electrical and plumbing installations continuing, and rooms taking shape include the main area, exhibition halls and conference rooms. The facility is expected to contribute an additional 4.5m visitors, £113m of visitor spend and £63m net Gross Value Added to the Scottish economy. It will also result in the creation of 352 www.conference-news.co.uk full-time-equivalent permanent positions by year 10 of operations. Aberdeen City Council co-leader Councillor Jenny Laing “We are delighted that summer 2019 is to be the opening date for TECA and we look forward to making many more exciting announcements about acts, exhibitions and conferences. “We want to attract major artists and new events to the north-east to ensure the area competes on a global scale and TECA plays a major part of that, as part of our Regional Economic Strategy which has internationalisation at its heart.” Aberdeen City Council co-leader Councillor Douglas Lumsden “It is fantastic to watch the building progressing so quickly and it’s very exciting to see the work on the interior fit-out, and with rooms now being