THE Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation Centre at Jalan Duta is expected to become Malaysia’s largest exhibition and convention centre when ready in five years time.

Set to be conveniently linked to the existing Menara Matrade, the Centre will offer the country a world-class exhibition venue — thus elevating Malaysia as a regional hub for international trade fairs, exhibitions and conventions.

The RM628 million project, undertaken by Naza TTDI Sdn Bhd, is scheduled for construction in the second quarter of next year and it’s completion is due in 2014.

Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Mustapa Mohamed said the development of the Matrade Centre fulfills Matrade’s needs for bigger facilities to host international and local events.

He said Malaysia is lagging behind many countries in terms of hosting meetings, incentives, conventions
and exhibitions (MICE) and the city is in need of excitement and buzz to spur economic growth.

“This will contribute to Malaysia becoming an epicentre for MICE activities in Southeast Asia. The Matrade Centre, with its stateof- the-art facilities, would further strengthen Malaysia’s position as the choice MICE destination in the region,” he said at the Matrade Centre signing ceremony (privatisation agreement) between the Government and Syarikat Tanah dan Harta Sdn Bhd with TTDI KL Metropolis Sdn Bhd yesterday. Mustapa added that the Matrade Centre is an iconic development for the MICE industry, following the establishment of exhibition centres such as the Putra World Trade Centre, the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre and the Sime
Darby Convention Centre.

The Government was supportive of the MICE industry and will continue to give priority to the industry as it contributes substantially to the Malaysian economy, particularly in the tourism and trade sector.

“The development of the Matrade Centre will be one of the benchmarks for the public-private partnership initiatives. This is one way to drive the nation towards a high-income economy.”

The one million sq ft Matrade Centre will contain three floors of exhibition space with 12 exhibition halls.

Sitting on an 5.3ha land, the Matrade Centre caters to large space exhibitors and the heavy industries. The centre’s exhibition hall will have a large clear columnfree span, a clear ceiling height between nine to 12 metres, and a floor loading of maximum five tons per sq metre.

The Matrade Centre will also house an auditorium with a capacity of 1,230 persons, a multi-purpose hall, several meeting rooms and display areas. There will also be VIP rooms, restaurants, a central kitchen and ticket counters.

Naza TTDI Sdn Bhd chairman, SM Nasarudin SM Nasimuddin said green buiding initiatives will also be a key element in the construction of the centre.

“The centre will incorporate a variety of mixed innovations to create a natural setting in harmony with the tropical natural environment of the country,” he said.

Nasarudin added that a mixed development project for shopping malls, offices, hotels and residences to be built around the Matrade Centre is among the plans. The project is to be carried out with a 26.3ha land swap with  the government for 99 years.

A gross development value of RM15 billion is expected over 10 years.